Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

The Government did make mistakes in this matter and it is glad to acknowledge that. We are glad to be in a position to rectify them if we can and set the platform for further expansion and growth.

This new Government strategy and action plan, which was prepared by the Minister of State responsible for trade, Deputy Kelleher, is the result of co-ordination with all of the relevant Departments and State agencies. It replaces the Asia strategy, it is global in scope and covers both existing and new high growth potential markets. It has set a number of ambitious targets to be achieved by 2015. Its objective is to create 150,000 new jobs in manufacturing, tourism and traded services. The jobs total figure of 150,000 direct new jobs is from agency estimates based on their growth targets over the strategy period, which ends in 2015. The IDA has set a target of 75,000 additional jobs, Enterprise Ireland is pinning its colours to the mast in respect of 60,000 new jobs and 15,000 jobs are pencilled in for the tourism sector.

The new strategy foresees the creation of an additional 150,000 jobs, to be created indirectly through the very aggressive trade strategy. The strategy is focused very much on creating a new and more visible presence for Ireland through agencies and embassies, and through direct marketing and promotion in markets in which we have not had a great footprint heretofore.

Forgetting for a minute Brazil, Russia, India and China, the fabled BRIC countries, Members should note that two thirds of the worlds GDP is generated between the Middle East and Far East. Any companies, countries or individuals who hope to be exporting entrepreneurs that ignore those markets do so at their peril. The region to which I refer is where the growth of the future will be and where most of the world's population is located. We need a new strategy.

There will be a considerable challenge for Ireland because traditionally its trade, tourism and investment footfall has been very much in the United Kingdom, other parts of Europe, the United States and in what we might broadly describe as the English-speaking parts of the world with which we are familiar culturally and otherwise and with which we have connections. It will present a big challenge for the current Government and its successor to penetrate the new regions, become very relevant and encourage Irish businesses to enter the new markets. That is the primary purpose of our agency push and why I, as a Minister of State in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, am proud to say that, over recent years, there has been a significant redistribution of financial resources within the Department to the agencies that encourage indigenous companies to trade in export markets. This is precisely because the challenge is so great, particularly in respect of the markets of the Far East.

The new strategy foresees the creation of new indirect jobs. This figure I referred to in this regard takes into account the various impacts from new jobs in manufacturing and services based on the number of projects, job intensity, purchase of raw materials and services, re-spending of salaries and impact of taxation.

The overall objective of Trading and Investing in a Smart Economy is to marshal and co-ordinate the resources of the State in a way that best supports firms of all sizes and in all parts of the country that are trying to trade and grow their business overseas. This new strategic approach recognises above all that it is critical that we, as a relatively small player in the global marketplace, work as a coherent team when promoting our economic interests abroad. This joined-up approach is even more necessary when trying to gain or increase our foothold in new high growth potential markets. It is a remarkable feature that I witnessed on some of my visits abroad as a Minister of State. It is precisely in the new markets, be they in Singapore, China or elsewhere, that our agencies are best organised on the ground. New markets force agencies that would have operated semi-independently in more settled markets to collaborate.

When one considers the size and population of China and the wealth being generated by it, one notes intense collaboration and co-operation between the embassy and agency staff, precisely because the Irish footprint on the ground is very small relative to the size of China and to the number of cities with over 1 million people in that country. It is a great challenge to be represented significantly in China.

One of the key messages in the Government's national recovery plan is that export-led growth will fuel domestic recovery. It recognises that the implementation of the strategy and action plan set out in Trading and Investing in a Smart Economy will ensure that our trade, tourism and investment sectors are well positioned to respond effectively to emerging opportunities as the global economy recovers.

The national recovery plan has set out specific actions to spur further improvements in competitiveness across all sectors of the economy, including measures to cut costs in respect of energy, waste, transport, broadband infrastructure, professional fees, property and labour.

Wages and other costs have adjusted to the change in labour market conditions. Government policy has aided in this competitiveness adjustment. Public sector wages have been reduced by an average of nearly 15%, sending a clear demonstration effect to the traded sectors, and the minimum wage is being reduced. IBEC surveys have found that one quarter of companies cut basic pay rates by an average of 12% in 2009.

Trading and Investing in a Smart Economy recognises that our favourable taxation environment has been a key strength. The Government's recovery plan commits to maintaining the 12.5% corporation tax rate which the new trade strategy identifies as a key component of our industrial policy. It is no accident that, in recent weeks and months and in light of the four year plan and the agreement reached with the EU, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, significant Ministers, including the Minister for Finance and the Taoiseach, have often stated how the rate is at the core of promoting Ireland. We are not for changing.

Ireland is not isolated in this regard. We stand alongside many European countries, most notably a number in central and eastern Europe. Although it is always difficult to say in an Irish context, our nearest neighbour and historical enemy of many years-----