Mr. John McKeon:

I can see the point, I suppose. With schemes like Gateway, the issue is about encouraging people to engage in the labour market and gain experience which, as I stated, they can use to demonstrate and prove their worth to other employers. The Deputy's question is whether it should be compulsory. There is another way of looking at it, and this is a Government decision. The alternative is that if people are available for work having been unemployed for a long time, it is better to have them occupied than not.