Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)

I thank the Minister of State for that reply. Clearly there is positive movement in the area. Is the Minister of State in favour of an incentive programme being put in place to encourage employers to take people from RAPID areas? I accept the need for back-up services if people lapse and so on. For instance, I am talking about people who are on drugs, but I am also talking about people in RAPID areas who need the extension of their social inclusion to be gainfully employed. I know that to some extent this is in the area of responsibility of the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. Employers should be given incentives to employ people from RAPID areas and, clearly, people who have had a drug habit and are now rehabilitated could also be taken on board. People whose lifestyle, as a result of methadone, is no longer chaotic, are employable too. There is a need to be proactive in encouraging employers to take on such people. We all know that in some of our cities and towns, certain addresses are a turn-off for employers. In some instances there is a tendency to look at an address rather than at a person.

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