Hildegarde Naughton (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the officials and thank them for the presentation. I welcome the roll-out of the Intreo offices and the slow but steady reduction in our unemployment rates. We are definitely going in a very positive direction. I would like to hear the views of officials on whether case officers should be able to impose reduced welfare payments on those who fail to engage with the process. Would it be possible for them to give us some targets and timelines with regard to where the Youth Guarantee is going? That would give us a clearer picture of the vision ahead. The National Economic and Social Council has found that the longer someone is on the live register, the more disincentivised they are go back into employment. We can all agree with that. Do the officials think it would be a good idea to link jobseeker's benefit to the unemployment rate, for example by giving extra supports at the beginning and providing in some cases for decreases in those supports the longer the unemployment spell continues? I would like to hear the witnesses' views on that.