SME owners in Ireland aren't impressed with the government's performance since it took office a few months ago, according to a survey carried out by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises (ISME) association.
The survey is the first such one taken by ISME since the convoluted post-election negotiations among Ireland's political parties and sought feedback on the new administration’s initial performance.
Conducted in the first week of July among 945 SME respondents nationwide, ISME found that the overall satisfaction rating decreased by 23 points in six months. All enterprises expressed dissatisfaction with government, including micro, small and medium firms. The latter cohort showed the biggest level of dissatisfaction.
Sector-wise, hospitality and distribution are the least satisfied, while construction is most satisfied. ISME's respondents were most unhappy with the government's efforts to reduce business costs, while also expressing dissatisfaction with its efforts around banking and the economy.
The only positive feedback from SMEs was in the area of jobs, which recorded a marginal improvement in overall SME satisfaction levels.
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Commenting on the results, Mark Fielding, ISME's CEO, said: “After seeing an improvement in perceptions over the last year, we now see that small business operators are feeling less supported by the government.
"In Q1, the results showed a frustration with the previous government and its efforts to form an administration. The results of the Q2 survey show a continued deterioration in overall satisfaction with government, the lowest in two years, albeit they have been skewed somewhat by the results of the UK Brexit vote."
Fielding continued: "Understanding business needs should be the starting point for enterprise policy. This survey identifies the areas of greatest dissatisfaction and it is now up to the new administration to implement targeted initiatives for improving the business environment.
"Issues such as increasing business costs, access to finance, poor broadband and late payments must be addressed if Irish SMEs are to have a hope of surviving."
