Debate resumed on amendment No. 1: To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following:“notes that: - the number of people in employment grew by 34,000 in the year ending June 2013, compared with a reduction of employment of more than 300,000 in the three year period ending March 2011; - the rate of unemployment in Ireland has fallen to 13.2 per cent at the end of October 2013, down from a peak of over 15 per cent in early 2012; - the number of people unemployed, seasonally adjusted, at the end of the second quarter of 2013 is 296,000, down 22,000 on the first quarter of 2012; - the number of unemployed young people aged under 25, seasonally adjusted, has fallen to 60,000, a reduction of 20,000 since it peaked in 2009; - the seasonally adjusted rate of unemployment for young people has fallen to 28 per cent in recent months, down from a peak of over 31 per cent in early 2012; - notwithstanding these positive developments, unemployment, and in particular youth unemployment, remains a serious concern; - the Government: - has prioritised actions to stimulate employment creation and reduce unemployment under the Action Plan for Jobs and Pathways to Work strategies; economic recovery and employment creation resulting from these policies will be the surest way to improve the unemployment situation, both overall and for young people; - prioritised youth unemployment as an issue to be addressed at European Union level, leading to agreement, under Ireland’s Presidency, of a Council Recommendation for a Youth Guarantee; this recommendation calls on member states to guarantee each unemployed young person under the age of 25 a job, training or education opportunity within four months of registering as unemployed; and - is preparing a plan for the implementation of the Recommendation commencing in 2014; the plan will build on the existing large-scale provision of training, education and work experience places for unemployed young people, and will be transmitted to the European Commission by the end of 2013;- the cost of the existing provision for unemployed young people is substantial – estimated to have been at least €170 million in 2012 – and expanded provision will be required; initial provisions totalling €46 million have been made across several Government Departments in budget 2014; - in this context, it is to be welcomed that Ireland is likely to receive supporting funding from the EU, under the Youth Employment Initiative and the European Social Fund, of approximately €60 million in respect of each of the years 2014 and 2015; and agrees that: - the continuing growth in employment and the reduction in unemployment are to be welcomed; - the Government should continue in its efforts to further increase employment and reduce unemployment, with a particular and urgent focus on youth unemployment;and - the implementation in Ireland of the Youth Guarantee, agreed under Ireland’s Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers, should form a pivotal part of the Government’s response to the challenge of youth unemployment. - (Minister for Social Protection)

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