Publications

In respect of the delivery of services via the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs)

Invitation to interested parties to submit written views and suggestions to support the Department’s work on developing a National Entrepreneurship Policy Statement

The Government's Action Plan for Jobs 2012 highlighted the need for a renewed focus on manufacturing. The overarching objective of this study is to address the skills requirements of the manufacturing sector in Ireland, over the period 2012-2020. This study has been developed in tandem with the wider strategy for manufacturing, Making it in Ireland, which is being undertaken by Forfás under the Action Plan for Jobs 2012.

Manufacturing plays a crucial role in any economy. Manufacturing is a driver of innovation and technological advance, provides employment across a broad range of skills levels, and generates additional indirect jobs throughout the economy. The Action Plan for Jobs 2012 sees manufacturing as essential for a return to more sustainable export-led growth. This strategy has been developed in response to the Action to: Develop a long term vision for the manufacturing sector and put in place a strategic plan that will help to realise this vision. This strategy looks at how manufacturing in Ireland can best compete over the period to 2020 in the context of the disruptive changes underway globally. Forfás has consulted extensively with industry, the enterprise development agencies, academia and key stakeholders in developing this strategy. The Manufacturing Development Forum established in 2012 by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation was a valuable source of insights throughout the process.

Regulation by or on behalf of the State plays an essential role in ensuring that economic activity by individual economic actors in consistent with wider national policy objectives, including consumer protection, environmental quality, provision of essential services, competition, and health and safety. As part of the Action Plan for Jobs 2012, Forfás undertook a study to identify changes in the operation of sectoral regulators that would enhance cost competitiveness. The sectors examined in the report are energy, telecommunications, transport, waste and water. The report also assesses Ireland’s cost performance in these sectors relative to our key competitor countries and the drivers of costs, in particular what drivers are within and outside our control in each of the sectors studied. The study finds that in many cases policy actions have a more significant impact on cost competitiveness than regulatory changes. There are, however, a number of areas where changes to the operation of the sectoral regulators could have a real and positive impact on cost competitiveness. These changes relate to the focus of regulatory mandates, the level and adequacy of resources, enforcement powers and sanctions available to the regulators, and the efficiency of the appeal process.

This Statement of Activity for 2012 provides details of the Group's output and activity in 2012, its forthcoming work in 2013 and information on the Group's research and analysis resources.

The Costs of Doing Business 2012 includes detailed cost profiles to assess the importance of various costs to 17 manufacturing and services sectors. It includes a wide range of benchmarks which measure Ireland's cost performance vis-à-vis our key competitors for trade and investment. It also assesses progress made to date and sets out further actions to reduce excessive business costs. Seven different cost components are examined: labour, property, utilities, transport, credit, professional services and general cost environment. This report is a deliverable under Action 1.27 in the Action Plan for Jobs 2012.