Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:To delete all words after “Dáil Éireann” and substitute the following: "acknowledges the important role that activation and work placement initiatives have had on supporting jobseekers; notes that: — the number of people in employment in Ireland grew by 61,000 or 3.3 per cent last year and stood at over 1.9 million at the end of 2013; and — the rate of unemployment was 11.9 per cent in February 2014, down from 15 per cent in early 2012; nevertheless remains concerned that: — the level of unemployment is still far too high; — 60,000 young people aged under 25 are without work; and — long-term unemployment levels remain above 155,000; recognises the Government’s commitment to: — prioritise actions to stimulate employment creation and reduce unemployment under the Action Plan for Jobs and Pathways to Work strategies; — focus attention on initiative for young unemployed people; — resource a broad range of interventions to support the jobseeker access education, training, internships and work placements; and — provide opportunities for over 25,000 placements on Community Employment, 7,500 placements on Tús and 3,000 placements on Gateway to support jobseekers back to work and to underpin the delivery of important services of benefit to communities; welcomes: — the commencement of the roll-out of Gateway in county and city councils; — the practical and social benefits Gateway offers the jobseeker to re-engage with work; — the continued positive feedback from participants on Community Employment and Tús, work placements programmes similar to Gateway and the enormous success of JobBridge, the national internship scheme; — the ongoing development of Government initiatives to support jobseekers in terms of further education and training, reskilling and activation, with a view to availing of opportunities as they arise in the economy; — the continued positive contribution in terms of service support at a local level that schemes such as Gateway can offer; and — the proposals made to the European Commission to support young people to get back into work; commends: — the commitment of county and city councils to deliver on Gateway and the positive outcomes it can have for jobseekers; — the fact that 15 per cent of places on Gateway will be reserved for those aged under 25; and — the ongoing commitment of the Minister for Social Protection and the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to the development and role of Gateway."- (Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton)

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