2008 business start-ups fall a third in Westmeath

The number of new businesses set up in Westmeath dropped by over a third over the course of last year, newly published survey results revealed this week. According to the latest Bank of Ireland Barometer which charts the number of new business start-ups nationwide every year, the Lake County went from highs of 326 in 2007 to just 218 twelve months later. Nationally, the study also indicates a sharp 21% fall-off in new companies being set up nationally last year compared with 2007. The survey also indicates all regions showed a drop in new companies in 2008 with the situation most acute in the North West. Longford and Offaly were the only counties who record an increase in activity in the final quarter of 2008 with Westmeath in 13th in the fourth quarter activity table. The Bank of Ireland Barometer shows the biggest casualties were in the construction/real estate and finance/insurance sectors in 2008, down just under 42%. Excluding these sectors, overall activity fell by just under 12% year on year.