Investment in connectivity infrastructure and support for enterprise key asks in Shannon Chamber’s pre-Budget Submission

With Budget 2020 Day looming, Shannon Chamber, in line with Chambers Ireland requests in its pre-Budget requests to Government, has placed investment in connectivity infrastructure and support for enterprise as key areas warranting attention when the Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe, unveils his much-anticipated Budget tomorrow, Tuesday, 9 October 2019.

In its submission, Shannon Chamber,  on behalf of its 300 member companies, stated that balanced regional development should not be presented as an aspiration but a tangible reality and that the financial provision to make this reality a reality must be evident in the compilation of Budget 2020, and in all the lifetimes of the National Planning Framework: Ireland 2040, which places sustainable regional development high on the agenda.

Shannon Chamber pre-Budget 2020 Submission (see link below) requested that:

  • Measures to support infrastructure investment and regional connectivity at Shannon Airport be implemented
  • Funding, under the Regional Airports Programme, be extended to Shannon Airport to assist with Capital-intensive safety and security projects
  • Regional targets for Tourism Ireland be set to support airlines in developing new routes into the regions alongside an increase in their route marketing funds
  • Hi-speed broadband be regarded as a key infrastructural asset in the drive to attract and sustain foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Mid-West and the entire western seaboard
  • Measures to support SMEs and entrepreneurs – Capital Gains tax reduction; PRSI relief vs tax relief for micro businesses and; indexing of tax relief for employees, be introduced
  • The eligibility list for granting employment permits be updated and social welfare rules be amended to remove the disincentive to work additional hours/days
  • Increased investment be allocated to the resources and capacity of the Irish Naturalisation and Immigration  Services to enable work visas and employment permits to be processed rapidly and efficiently.

Full details of Shannon Chamber’s and Chambers Ireland’s Pre-Submissions can be found below.

 

Shannon Chamber Pre-Budget Submission FINAL

Chambers Ireland Pre Budget Submission https://bit.ly/33rEavk