Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The previous Deputy's contribution has provided many opportunities for me to contribute, but I will leave that for another day because there are some very good people before us. I will not engage in commenting on the 14 years of misery that was mentioned.

I thank the witnesses for their report and the work they do. It is hugely important in trying to set a framework in which we can work towards achieving the vision set out in Europe 2020. Have the witnesses done any research about the minimum wage? I have my own view on it but we regularly get anecdotal information from employers that seems to suggest that if the minimum wage was lower we could employ more of the cohort of people mentioned who are long-term unemployed, have little or no skills and may not have a particular educational attainment. That suggestion is often offered to us as public representatives across all parties. I am not making a case for a reduction in the minimum wage but I would like to be in a position to be able to retort on that based on evidence the witnesses have gathered or gleaned.