Start-ups expected to create 90,000 jobs

The Government is targeting the creation of more than 90,000 new jobs by start-up firms over the next five years.

Launching the Government’s new National Policy Statement on Entrepreneurship in Ireland — the first of its kind — Jobs Minister Richard Bruton yesterday said that while the country has “many great entrepreneurs”, it doesn’t have enough of them.

The key target of the new strategy is a doubling of the 93,000 jobs currently linked to start-up companies. It is largely based on recommendations published earlier this year by the expert forum on entrepreneurship, chaired by Irish-American entrepreneur Sean O’Sullivan.

This will be done by increasing the number of start-ups by 25% — seeing 3,000 more companies being formed per annum, in the coming five years — and increasing the survival rate of these firms in their first five years by the same percentage, which would mean 1,800 more survivors per year.

Also on the agenda is a doubling in the volume of funding to start-ups from business angel investors. Currently, around €70m is invested by angel investors in Ireland.

“Given that two-thirds of all new jobs come from start-ups, it is crucial that we improve our supports in this area if we are to create the jobs we need,” Mr Bruton said at yesterday’s launch.

The new strategy will include mentoring services, reductions in administration and levels of red tape linked with establishing a company and new targets for Government agencies — including a 12% increase in start-ups to be supported by Enterprise Ireland by next year.

A new marketing plan to promote Ireland to overseas start-ups will be launched and entrepreneurship/ apprenticeship programmes will be launched in schools and colleges.

Helping start-up firms enter export markets will also feature.

Mr Bruton said that Government can do a lot to incentivise and encourage people to start their own business and maintained that the targets set out in the new plan are “ambitious but realistic”.

“We have set out what Government will do to help deliver on this — including interventions in mentoring, access to finance, education, promoting start-up as a career option and providing spaces where entrepreneurs can work.

“More and more people in Ireland are choosing to create a job, instead of getting a job. I am convinced that, with the right supports from Government, we can deliver a step-change in this area and create tens of thousands of jobs that we badly need.”

Ged Nash, the minister of state for business and employment, added that entrepreneurship is “critical” to the health of the economy.

“We now have a comprehensive policy to support our existing entrepreneurs and to ensure a steady pipeline of future business founders,” he said.