Gerald Nash (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Like the Deputy, I would be concerned about the prospect of tendering for labour activation services. Even if the Minister and her officials were minded over a period of time to go down that route, my advice would be to reflect on it. The review of the operation of JobPath might inform the Department's approach to that. Like Deputy Brady and others, I am not convinced of the requirement to go through a public tendering process to obtain these services. If I cannot get copies of the Minister's legal advice on this, I would like her to elucidate more on the nature of that advice.

Yesterday we had a very interesting debate in the Seanad on a Bill introduced by Senator Higgins. It is very timely legislation designed to ensure our public procurement system places greater emphasis on social, environmental and labour responsibilities. It is important to reflect on these issues when tendering, particularly for something as significant as this. If the Minister decides to tender for these kinds of services, the tenders should be designed very carefully so as not to exclude accidentally or otherwise organisations that are well equipped and well experienced in terms of providing these very important services. We know that tenders are often designed to obtain the result the system may want. I ask the Minister to elaborate on the timeline envisaged for tendering for activation services of this nature as that would focus our minds on the horizon ahead.

More than adequate information is available from the Indecon report to justify the sustainment of the LES and job club model into the future, particularly when we remember the considerable number of households with no working adult. It concerns me and I know it concerns the Minister. It concerns anybody with any interest in the idea and value of work in our society. It seems very clear that the LES and job club model is best placed to deliver the kinds of customised and tailored services that those who are very distant from the labour market require.

The payment-by-results model, which seems to be entirely driven by the profit motive, is not well positioned to provide the kinds of wraparound and customised services that LES and the job clubs are renowned for providing. LES and job clubs provide something that money cannot buy - the institutional memory and expertise built up over many years. The Indecon report shows clearly that the LES operations across the country have very strong relationships with local employers. Employers interviewed as part of this process demonstrated that their experience with the local employment service and job clubs was very important and very useful in identifying employees for their organisations. That in itself is a very convincing argument for allowing the LES model to continue.

It is crucial to continue to have a community-based response with all the kinds of things that LES and job clubs do to reach those people who are of concern to me and to the Minister - those who are very distant from the labour market and those who for a variety of socioeconomic reasons often experience intergenerational unemployment. In our day-to-day work in our communities we come across many people who are victims of those unfortunate circumstances.

I ask the Minister to reflect on my comments on public tendering and the legal position. Even if she and her officials are minded to enter into a public procurement process to obtain labour activation services of this nature, I ask her to wait until she has the JobPath review in her hand because it should inform our approach to future labour activation services.