Ms Joanna Murphy:

I am happy to answer the question. The IDA has not verified the jobs yet. This process is ongoing and evolving. For the committee's benefit I have brought along a form. Obviously when IDA celebrates its jobs number every year, it uses the annual employment survey to do so. By way of illustration, and I hope nobody minds, there are two boxes on the form on which employers can write the number of their employees.

If they do not know the exact number, an estimate is sufficient. As I said, there are two boxes to be completed. The employer then signs the form and returns it to the IDA. This is the ConnectIreland verification process, which members will note runs to two pages. It is a 26 stage process which involves redacted bank statements, contracts of employment and post-six months probation information, which in the digital age involves a physical visit to Gweedore by one man based in Wilton Place in Dublin. This is an enormously impractical verification process than can be improved. In regard to the review, we would be suggesting to the people carrying out that review that the verification process be simplified. We have very good ideas as to how that might be done. I hope that clarifies the position for the Deputy.