Mayo Fine Gael General Election candidate, Michelle Mulherin, says Fine Gael in Government will offer every support to the small business sector which has the potential to create thousands of jobs.
She said the Fine Gael proposals ‘Putting Small Business First’ will mean Ireland’s small and medium enterprise sector will be the standard for the rest of Europe and bring about an era of rapid and sustainable development in Ireland.
She was welcoming the Fine Gael five point plan to kick-start a small business revolution and facilitate new business start-ups.
Cllr Mulherin said the key policies of the new plan include redirecting tax reliefs into the SME sector, examine the Constitutional case for removing upward only rent reviews, a partial loan guarantee for viable small businesses, cut red tape by 25 per cent, a jobs tax cut to reduce staff costs for employers, set up powerful ‘one stop shops’ for SMEs across the country, a single business inspectorate, make it easier for SMEs to tender for public contracts.
Cllr Mulherin said: “SMEs and micro businesses are the backbone of the Irish economy and will play a crucial role in our economic recovery. These 86,000 small businesses employ more than 700,000 people, generating more than €90 billion in turnover every year. More than 50 per cent of all VAT collected comes through the SME sector.
“’Putting Small Business First’ provides a comprehensive policy framework for the small business sector, for the first time. It will protect existing jobs, and create new ones across all sectors, at minimal cost to the State.
“The plan will greatly benefit Ireland’s six growth industries: biotechnology; medicine and health care; creative industries; tourism; green energy; agri-food. It will also provide much needed support to SMEs in the construction industry. It’s time for a new era of rapid and sustainable economic development, with SMEs at its heart,” Cllr Mulherin added.
