This report presents a comprehensive picture of the contribution of small enterprises in Ireland. The report contains data on the contribution of small businesses in industry, services and construction, as well as statistics on the labor, the knowledge-based economy and workforce. It also includes international comparisons.

In the report, a small business is defined as an enterprise which employs fewer than 50 people. Statistics on medium (50-249 persons) and large enterprises (250 or more people) are included for comparison.

Highlights of the report are:

Industry: Production and employment dominated by medium and large enterprises

* In 2005, four of the five industrial companies (81%) were small businesses with fewer than 50 employees. This company employs 50,000 people, slightly more than one fifth of total industrial employment. * The larger companies (50 or more persons) employed 181,100 people in 2005 and generated 93% of the total turnover in the industry. * The vast majority of small industrial firms were Irish owned (95%). Nearly 42% of larger companies are foreign-owned.

Services: More than 380,000 employees of small businesses in the service sector

* In the service sector, almost all companies (98%) were small. There were 82,100 small businesses, employing over 380,000 people in the service sector in 2005. That was more than half of total employment in this sector. * Small businesses account for nearly half (49%) of total turnover in the services sector, and generates a turnover of nearly ? 81.6bn in 2005. * Nearly half of small businesses in the service sector are the property of the family (47%). The vast majority of these family businesses employed fewer than 10 people.

Construction: Small businesses occupied two thirds of all people who work in construction

* According to the Quarterly National Household Survey, there were 253,200 employed in construction in the fourth quarter of 2005. Of these, 211,000 have indicated that they worked in small businesses (fewer than 50 employees), while 24,500 have indicated that they worked in large enterprises (50 or more employees). A further 17,600 not specify the number of employees to their jobs.

* Among the 253,200 people employed in the construction industry, more than 65% worked for very small concerns employing less tha ten people.

Salaries and wages: 54% of private sector employees in small firms earned between ? 10 – ? 20 per hour in 2006

* The average hourly wage in small businesses were ? 15.22 in 2006 compared to ? 19.38 in companies with 50 or more workers in 2006.

* The average annual salary for employees in a small business amounted to ? 32,453 in 2006. The average wage in large enterprises was ? 44,794 per year.

Knowledge-based economy: the larger companies have shown higher levels of e-government activities

* Small businesses generally not more modern information and communication technology than larger companies.

* Almost all companies with 10 or more employees were connected to the Internet that two-thirds of businesses with fewer than 10 employees to use the Internet.

Size of work: almost 56% of employment in small workplaces

* In all areas, 56% of jobs in workplaces where fewer than 50 persons were employed in the second quarter of 2007. A total of 1175800 people worked in small workplaces. Of these, 839,300 were employees, 216,600 are self-employed and 107,900 are self-employed with employees. These figures include agriculture and the public sector and the economy.

* Among the 316,300 non-Irish nationals in employment in the second quarter of 2007, less than half (47%) worked in small workplaces.

EU comparison, the value added in small construction firms in Ireland was three times the EU average in 2005

* Almost three-quarters of production in Ireland turnover was generated by large companies, while the EU average was 60%.

* In 2005, Ireland is recorded but the gross value added per employee of ? 51,600 in the distribution of services. The EU average was ? 33,000 per employee. * The gross value added per employee in the construction industry in Ireland was significantly higher than the EU average for all types of employment dimension.



Wallpaper Union

Royal Bank of Scotland, England, the second largest bank, is to ensure discovered tariffs and contracts for its customers for at least a year.

It is the first bank to promise not to withdraw its loans in an effort to ensure its 1.1 million customers to survive the recession.

The recession was first noticed around october of 2008 when a bailout plan was announced and HM Treasury bought £5 billion in RBS preference shares. The Treasury would infuse £37 billion ($64 billion, ?47 billion) of new capital into Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Lloyds TSB and HBOS Plc, to avert financial sector collapse. In the event, less than 56 million new shares were taken up by investors, or 0.24pc of the total offered by RBS in October 2008.

The move was by politicians and small businesses.

But there are fears that the pledge May to late for many companies already higher cost of borrowing.

“The company violated”

RBS, which is also owner of NatWest, was heavily influenced by the global financial crisis.

Earlier this week, shareholders voted their £ 20 billion government bail-out of taxpayers’ money.

The vote means the government could end a stake of up to 60% in the troubled bank.

The BBC’’s business correspondent Joe Lynam, said the fact that a bank was a public promise to honor agreed was discovered that a measure of how bad the credit crisis has affected the normal lending practices.

Stephen Alambritis of the Federation of Small businesses (FSB), said other banks would follow.

“Now it is time for them to wake up to the fact that they were saved, so that you can turn small businesses,” he said.

“Small businesses are damaged by the way they were treated unfairly by the banks expect that the government, which now has a stake in banks to ensure that balance again.”

He said he was confident that other banks follow the lead of RBS.

“They have a great tradition of copycat tactics. Banks are like oil tankers battle – they are very slow to move, but once one of them moves, is good news,” he added.

Scottish small business like many other businesses around the globe have suffered the consequences of the credit crunch so taking this inconsideration the Royal Bank of Scotland has taken the initiative to make sure that many local small businesses won”t go under and that the tough financial stress won”t create a catastrophic collapse that will hurt the local economy.

Small business credit and consumer credit are the life and blood of any financial system so it is the duty of those in charge, in this case the Royal Bank of Scotland, to step up and protect their assets and the future and financial solvency of small business that just like many others are struggling to make ends meet at the end of the day.



Giga Flux

Chancellor Darling’s Pre-Budget Report was a boom for small businesses. A series of measures totally £ 7BN was introduced to help them survive, as the credit crunch bites. This was seen to keep businesses to strive during a possible recession.

We offer a detailed description of how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) stand to benefit…

Because small businesses to benefit from ads today?

? Corporation: The government is deferring for a year, the expected increase in small companies’ rate of corporation tax. The rate remains at 21% in 2009-10, which should be small businesses £ 400 million per year to play with.

? “empty” property “: These properties are rates of 2009/10, while they have a rateable value of less than £ 15,000, which the Treasury is said to the liberation of approximately 70% are empty.

This should help companies build, short-term problems and cash flow is a welcome introduction: There were reports of companies in the demolition of these buildings to avoid paying their taxes.

? BUSINESS AWARDS: The government plans to legislate to ensure the company more time to pay some companies retroactively rates bills issued before 31 March 2010.

Companies, those with these bills in a position to limit their liability for the past few years in equal interest-free installments over eight years rather than immediately.

? Additional resources: In addition to funding from the United Kingdom, UK small and medium-sized enterprises should also be able to benefit from around £ 4BN loans from the European Investment Bank (EIB), from 2008 to 2011. About £ 1 billion for these funds should be available by the end of 2008.

Moreover, the government is a new Small Business Finance System for support of up to £ 1 billion bank loan, together with another mechanism guarantee for up to £ 1 billion bank to help small exporters. It will also make available a fund of £ 50 for the transformation of companies’ debt into capital.

? Tax payments: Companies in financial difficulty may be paying the tax bills for an indefinite period. A New Business Support payment service was launched to help companies calculate what they need time for their distribution businesses, VAT, PAYE, income tax and National Insurance contributions in order to remain profitable and ensure readiness.

? Availability of loans “: The chancellor has announced that it has banks, the willingness and active marketing of competitive loans to small businesses in 2007 levels. Specifically, RBS praised for its display is not going to raise prices on SMEs discovered , Said “should be the reference point for all banks in the United Kingdom.”

? Profits made abroad: Foreign dividends are exempt from tax in the Finance Act 2009 for large and medium-sized enterprises, supported by a stopper worldwide interest on debt



Giga Flux