The government has launched a special Year 2000 (Y2K) millennium-bug information service for small and medium enterprises. This is the first time it has invested in a programme to prompt action, since its Y2K awareness campaign began last May.

The government is now prepared to spend £1 million helping small and medium enterprises tackle the Y2K issue, according to the Minister for Science, Technology and Commerce, Mr Treacy.

"World infinity day, 09/09/99, is fast approaching. If companies are not Year 2000 compliant by that date, God only knows what will happen to them, their staffs and their entire business on 01/ 01/2000. This scenario is too disastrous to contemplate. Today, I give on behalf of the Government, the final warning of 1998 to all businesses. Act now," Mr Treacy said at the launch of the new information service.

The new service will feature a helpline number (1850 572 000) manned by information officers at Enterprise Ireland. The officers will act as facilitators offering guidelines to companies for further help. More detailed queries will initially be handled by a backup panel of internal experts. This may be expanded once demand for the service has been assessed.

Callers to the helpline can request an information pack including checklists for self assessment; sample draft letters to equipment and software suppliers to ensure their systems are Y2K compliant; information on company liability; a directory of service suppliers and a faxback form for more detailed queries.

A dedicated website (www.enterprise-ireland.com/y2k) has also been established, featuring a number of case studies of Irish companies successfully preparing their systems for the millennium.

Enterprise Ireland has also said it intends to run a series of training workshops for companies and intermediaries through county enterprise boards and chambers of commerce throughout the state.

The project is initially being funded by Enterprise Ireland, which has set aside £50,000 to finance the service until March. Depending on demand for the service the project will then be assessed and additional funding for greater technical expertise, localised training and workshops, and monitoring will be allocated by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

Sources within the department are reluctant to estimate the eventual cost of the service until demand for it has been assessed, but Mr Treacy's suggestion of about £1 million is thought to be more than ample to fulfil the aims of the new service until March, 2000.