Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke TD, FCA, outlines his plans to ensure Ireland’s SMEs have the support they need to succeed and flourish.
Just three weeks into his tenure as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Peter Burke TD, FCA, had already hit the ground running, unveiling a pre-budget SME support package to provide a boost to Ireland’s small- and medium-sized businesses.
This “sense of urgency” will, he says, continue to inform his work in the months ahead as he advocates on behalf of SMEs and traders up and down the country.
“SMEs are vital to Ireland’s success and central to our ability to build a broad-based and successful economy,” says Burke.
“While there has been some moderation in the rate of wholesale price inflation, and measures to date have helped many vulnerable but viable firms, these new measures will help SMEs’ long-term financial sustainability, and aid them to grow and thrive so as to sustain good jobs into the future.”
The need to support and champion SMEs is a cause close to Burke’s heart. He grew up on a family farm close to Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, and went on to study commerce at NUI Galway, graduating in 2004.
“We had a suckler farm, which is a bit unusual in that you only get paid once a year, and I would have watched my dad over the years managing cashflow around that one annual payment,” he says.
“I was always very interested in figures at school – trying to plan into the future to meet cashflow demands – and I really enjoyed studying business for Junior Cert. That enticed me into accountancy and, when I went on to NUI Galway, I chose to major in the subject.”
Early interest in business
Burke also nurtured a wider interest in business and, in particular, “understanding the mechanics of business – looking under the bonnet and taking a deep dive.”
“I wanted to understand where the revenue is generated and how to invest and spend in a sustainable manner that doesn’t leave you with the red light on at the end of the year,” he says.
Following his graduation, Burke went on to train as a Chartered Accountant with Stephens Cooke & Associates in Mullingar, qualifying in 2009.
“I didn’t apply to the Big Four firms because I felt that I had a better chance of gaining a solid understanding of everything in a medium-sized practice with a wide dispersal of clients,” he explains.
“I would be working on a capital acquisitions tax return one day, dealing with an estate the next, then looking at stamp duty or advising a client on VAT and carrying out Revenue audits – it was complete exposure to everything – an A to a Z take on business, and that’s exactly what I wanted.”
Political career
Before his election to the Dáil in 2016, Burke served as a Councillor on Westmeath County Council.
“I was elected to both Westmeath County Council and Mullingar Town Council in 2009, which gave me my first platform in elected politics and, at that time, Chartered Accountants Ireland agreed to defer my exams,” he says.
“That allowed me to run in those elections and I wouldn’t be where I am today without it, so I really appreciated it. I continued post-qualification with Stephens Cooke & Associates right up until I got elected to The Dáil in 2016 as a TD for the Longford-Westmeath constituency.
“It took a few attempts to get there but, if you really want to do something in life – if you feel it’s for you – and you don’t succeed the first time, you have to try again. Persistence and determination do pay off.”
Leaving behind his career in practice came with a “tinge of sadness” for Burke, who had built strong working relationships with SMEs across the country through his work as a Chartered Accountant.
“I really missed that, but getting elected to the Dáil also brought an exciting new horizon and a fresh challenge. I was delighted to be appointed to the Finance Committee and the Public Accounts Committee. Those roles gave me unbelievable insight into how government departments operate and how decisions are made.”
Burke was appointed Minister of State for Housing, Local Government and Heritage in 2020 and served as Minister of State for both European Affairs and the Department of Defence from 2022 to April 2024, when he took up his current role as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
“It has been a priority of Taoiseach Simon Harris to support our small businesses since he took office. When I got the call from Simon and sat down face-to-face with him, one of the first things he said to me was, ‘I really want to get a package together to support our SMEs’.
“We were both very much at one on this, because I fully understand from my work as a Chartered Accountant that SMEs employ 70 percent of people right across our country. They are central to economic activity in all our communities.”
Key SME measures
Key measures outlined in the pre-budget SME support package put forward by Minister Burke in May include reopening the Increased Cost of Business (ICOB) scheme for an additional 14 days, introducing a second ICOB payment for businesses in retail and hospitality, and doubling the lending limit for Microfinance Ireland loans from €25,000 to €50,000.
The package also doubles the Innovation Grant Scheme to €10,000 and increases the maximum amount available under the Energy Efficiency Grant Scheme to €10,000 while halving the business contribution rate to 25 percent.
The employer PRSI threshold will rise from €441 to €496 with effect from 1 October 2024, ensuring that employers with employees earning the weekly equivalent of the national minimum wage will pay the lower rate of employer PRSI at 8.8 percent.
Eligibility for both the Digital for Business Consultancy Scheme and Trading Online Voucher have also been extended to businesses in all sectors employing up to 50 employees while the value of the grant itself has been doubled to €5,000.
“As a politician and policymaker, I have to look ahead and ask, ‘how am I going to make life easier for our businesses every single day in the future?’” Burke says.
“We have approved capital schemes for upgrading infrastructure like LED lighting, refrigeration and kitchens, which could cut some companies’ monthly energy bill by up to €1,500. We are offering a €10,000 grant whereby the business has to put up just 25 percent of the total cost.
“We are focusing on innovation and supporting investment in innovation among SMEs by various means, including collaboration with tertiary institutions, so that they can continue to adapt and remain competitive into the future.”
An enhanced ‘SME Test’ has also been introduced by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in conjunction with the Department of An Taoiseach.
“This means that when a statutory instrument or new regulation is under review, we think small first and ask, ‘how is this going to impact our SME sector?’ This test will be very important for policymaking into the future.”
Burke has published the first ever Local Enterprise Offices (LEO) Policy Statement, which will run to 2030, providing “clarity and certainty” on the role of the nationwide network for 31 LEOs in administering measures outlined in his SME support package.
“Over 370,000 businesses are eligible for some type of support from the LEOs, such as assistance in starting and growing a business, as well as expert guidance on how to save time, money and energy, mentoring, training and general business advice,” he says.
“A number of these measures will be actioned by the LEOs – including increasing the Energy Efficiency Grant, opening up grants to help more businesses to digitalise, and launching Ireland’s Best Emerging Entrepreneur Programme to encourage entrepreneurship and start-ups in under-represented groups.”
Outlook for Irish business
The “sense of urgency” Burke describes at the beginning of this interview will, he says, continue to guide his work in the months ahead.
“I’m very much aware of where we were in the government cycle when I got this job and that creates a sense of urgency that will underpin everything I do,” he says.
“You will see a very strong impetus to ensure that businesses have all the supports they need to succeed and flourish and keep our economy growing and continuing to employ the 2.71 million people we have currently working in Ireland.”
The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office, published in May, revealed continued growth in Ireland’s labour market.
Some 50,500 jobs were created in the year to the end of March 2024 bringing employment to 2.71 million, up about 1.9 percent year-on-year.
“I’ve talked about the sense of urgency I feel in this role, but equal to this is the importance I place on evidence,” Burke says.
“I always base my decisions on evidence-driven data. You need to ensure that you’re fully informed and the Chartered Accountant qualification will help with that. Some of the things I love most about accountancy are very much aligned with my interest in politics.
As a Chartered Accountant, I really enjoy working with people – going into a business, meeting the directors, the senior management team, and helping them to plan for the future.
“The same applies in politics – you’re working with people, planning ahead and balancing different demands, trying to work out the viability of various plans and proposals and thinking ahead so you can deliver the best outcome.”
The outlook for Ireland’s SME sector, business generally and the wider economy is broadly positive, Burke believes, but no measure of growth and success should, he warns, be taken for granted.
“I am heartened to see employment continue to rise this year and I absolutely see a bright future for Ireland’s SMEs, particularly those that innovate and grab emerging opportunities – but you can’t take anything for granted,” he says.
“No matter how healthy the economy, we must always be looking ahead, considering all the evidence and putting in place the guardrails and incentives to protect and support business in Ireland well into the future.”
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