- Flanked by Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore and jobs minister Richard Bruton, Taoiseach Enda Kenny announces his government's new jobs creation plan in Dublin on Monday.
Finders fees could be offered to Irish Americans who manage to attract inward investment to Ireland, a new Irish government plan has suggested.
The government has drawn up an "Action Plan for Jobs" which it hopes will see up to 200,000 new employment opportunities created by 2020.
In a time of high unemployment and biting fiscal austerity, the document unveiled this week by Minister for Enterprise, Richard Bruton aims to boost existing Irish firms and also attract international investment back to Irish shores.
The document, which was flagged in New York last week during the taoiseach's visit, also reveals that the Irish diaspora across the globe, including the United States, could benefit from a form of "finder's fee" should they successfully secure inward investment to the Republic. Investment opportunities for those of Irish extraction abroad will also be available as part of the action plan.
The long list of proposed initiatives to take place right across government departments and state agencies has been given the thumbs up by Taoiseach Enda Kenny, and could see the creation of a €150 million "Development Capital Scheme" which would offer financial support to smaller firms struggling to access credit. Other measures in the plan include the extension of the waiving of corporation tax fees for start-up businesses. The plan also envisages the revival of Ireland's technology sector, particularly in the lucrative digital gaming market.
"We will improve access to finance for small businesses, reduce costs and red tape, and improve supports for exports, management and innovation," Minister Bruton said.
"It will not be easy, but we are determined to implement the plan, rebuild the economy, and create the jobs we so badly need."
Meanwhile, the taoiseach said it was his government's responsibility to "remove the barriers to job creation."
He added: "That's why in Budget 2012, we didn't increase taxes on work. That's why
"We always push for the kinds of change that make it worthwhile to go to work. That's why we will do all we can to encourage people into, or back into, the workforce as new opportunities arrive," Kenny said.
