HIGH DEPENDENCE on construction and manufacturing, lower levels of financial services and the decline in agriculture, could worsen the recession in the west, according to analysis carried out by the Western Development Commission.
The analysis, which assesses enterprise, infrastructure and the rural economy in the light of cuts recommended by the McCarthy report on public spending, concludes there is a very real danger national cuts would have a “disproportionate effect in rural areas”.
The McCarthy measures “could undermine efforts to foster smarter regional economies”, according to the analysis submitted to the Oireachtas Committee on Finance and the Public Service.
Specifically, the analysis is critical of proposals to merge all indigenous enterprise functions into Enterprise Ireland. It argues the measure would “not only remove dedicated regional development enterprise” but would reduce accessibility to services for entrepreneurs in many areas.
It also criticised a proposal to merge all science, technology and innovation funding into a single stream, to cut overall funding and to prioritise research with an economic return of three to five years.
The analysis notes: “[This] means that those regions with a weaker innovation capacity, both in terms of enterprises and third-level institutions, are likely to lose out on research funding.”
Proposals for cuts in the tourism industry were also criticised. “Reduced support . . . will most affect those regions which currently have a weaker tourism product such as the northwest.”
The Western Development Commission notes the detrimental effects of the McCarthy plans on the “creative sector” and transport access, which, it notes, has a big role to play in attracting foreign investment. It is particularly critical of proposals to end funding for rural public transport.
