Mr. Bernard Fennessy:

Jobs clubs were completely dropped from the equation with this new tender. They do not appear in the new tender. They were just dropped. To give the members an idea of value for money, the average person who is unemployed earns approximately €10,000 a year in social welfare payments. The dearest jobs club probably costs €150,000. The maths are simple. The cost of the jobs club is covered by 15 people being placed into full employment. Everything else represents a positive return to the State. Across the country, jobs clubs, with their local employment service colleagues, have consistently delivered value for money. Despite this, jobs clubs were dropped from the equation. Independent jobs clubs were told to go to the local development company or partnership and ask whether they could be taken on board. These bodies cannot even make the figures match up for their own LES colleagues, never mind adding on a jobs club. Why would such a cost-effective model be dropped? That is a question that has to be asked. It makes no sense.