Business start-ups growing at a record rate

A report published today has revealed that people in Ireland are going into business at a record rate. Figures show that the number of small firms being created is running at 2,000 a month.

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor said it was responsible for producing 100,000 new jobs in the past two years – which would put Ireland ahead of Britain, France, Germany and Japan.

Pat Delaney from the Small Firms Association said borrowing to start a business was cheaper than ever: “When we used to have a lot of strong entrepreneurial ideas, access to finance would have been difficult,” he said.

“The cost of finance is at a 50-year low and increasingly I think people are seeing the societal change that has taken place in Ireland where actually starting a business and running a business is a positive thing.”