Press release
Minister English visits Limerick Local Enterprise Office
From Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Published on
Last updated on
From Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Published on
Last updated on
Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English TD, has concluded his visit to the Limerick Local Enterprise Office today.
The visit to Limerick is the first in a series of nationwide visits by Minister English who is keen to meet the Local Enterprise Office teams and engage with some of their client companies to see first-hand the work that is being done to support enterprise development on the ground in Limerick.
On his visit to Limerick, Minister English visited Allerton Foods at the Bruree Food Unit where he was greeted by Pat Hayes and John Kerry. The Bruree Food Unit is a 5,000 square foot enterprise centre dedicated to food manufacturing and research and development.
Furthermore, the Minister met with Head of Enterprise from the Limerick Local Enterprise Office, Mike Cantwell in ENGINE, which provides a platform for engagement for businesses at all stages of enterprise, from start-ups to established businesses. An informative presentation for the launch of Innovate Limerick was given with a panel discussion following. Innovate Limerick’s mission is to achieve regional value and enterprise growth through continuous expansion of the innovation community.
Minister English received a tour of Limerick Enterprise Development Partnership. The LEDP Campus boasts a 143-room hotel, retail outlets, vital community services, and a multinational retailer as well as the multiple activities carried out daily within the LEDP building.
While on his visit to Limerick the Minister also met with local Oireachtas Members, members of Limerick City and County Council, Dr. Pat Daly, CEO and Vincent Murray, Director of Services, Economic Development & Enterprise. Discussions on the next iteration of the ‘Look for Local’ campaign took place. ‘Look for Local’ is an awareness campaign, developed by the Local Enterprise Offices and Enterprise Ireland and is run in conjunction with the local authorities.
Speaking at the visit today Minister English said:
"The Local Enterprise Office in Limerick have worked hard with businesses across the county to help sustain them and local job opportunities over the past 18 months. I am grateful to the LEO team in Limerick for helping firms to make the transition to online trading and for continuing to offer their expert mentoring, training, upskilling and financial supports during the pandemic.
"People have shown that by ‘Looking for Local’ a big impact can be made on communities through supporting our local businesses. Consumers can enjoy first class products, services, and experiences on their doorstep in Limerick, and by supporting Look for Local, they will help ensure positive economic, environmental and societal impacts that will benefit all in the community."
Minister English concluded by saying:
"The positive engagements today in Limerick are a solid footing for the future development of local enterprise as the economy continues to exit the pandemic and back to more normal trading conditions."