Ivana Bacik (Independent)

I, too, welcome the action plan for jobs launched yesterday. It amounts to a significant new programme with more than 270 actions, some clearly based on initiatives taken previously and some of which are new. Some actions are creative and have already captured people's imagination. I know that people in small businesses are interested in the diaspora finder's fee. That measure, coupled with the visa waiver programme mentioned by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, in the House last Thursday, incentivises people outside of Ireland to invest here and create jobs. I have perused the action plan already and it contains important new provisions on the strategic investment fund, freeing up credit for small businesses and reforming procurement procedures for them too. It is important that we are seen to support small and medium-sized enterprises and indigenous enterprises that are major employers here.

I would welcome a debate on the action plan on jobs, following on from what Senator Darragh O'Brien has said. A debate would build on the one we already had here on job creation when a Minister was not present. The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton, wrote to us and said he would take into account our suggestions. It would be very useful if we could build on that debate, even without a Minister being present, and debate the proposals for job creation made in the action plan and how some of our own ideas might feed into the further development of the plan. It is welcome that the Taoiseach will be monitoring the plan and that quarterly reviews will be held. Even if similar measures have been announced before, there was often a failure to ensure they took effect and actually worked.

I call for a debate on the universities as some significant reports have been issued this week. Yesterday the HEA issued a very significant report on the criteria necessary for the emergence of technological universities, something which has been sought for some time in the south east. I spoke at a conference last Friday in Trinity College Dublin at which quite a number of issues were examined as to what made a university different from other institutes of higher education. This is a debate we could usefully continue and develop in the House in order to bring different perspectives to bear. Other reports are due from the HEA this week on the future shape of third level education and I welcome the proposals for reform brought forward by the Minister. It would be very useful to have a debate devoted specifically to third level education and the universities.