Denis Naughten (Longford-Roscommon, Fine Gael)

Is it not obvious to the Minister that we are haemorrhaging jobs because this economy is now an extremely costly one in which to do business? The report issued yesterday by the National Competitiveness Council makes grim reading in terms of the issues regarding the future development of the economy. It reveals that the Government has made little progress in addressing spiralling business costs in recent years and that it will lead to a dramatic collapse in our export market unless that problem is addressed.

The Minister said the Small Business Forum highlighted a number of issues, one of which concerned regulation. Very little has been done to address that issue. The other one concerns local authority charges. Local authority charges have consistently increased during the term of this Government. In fact, since 2002, the Government has introduced over 40 increased stealth taxes. What assurance can the Minister give the House that he will prevent his colleagues from increasing those stealth charges or introducing new indirect taxes? What practical steps does he intend to take now to address the issues regarding regulation, not some time in the future?

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