Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 1:

To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:

"—commends the Government on the successful management of the economy which has placed Ireland in the top 4 of the 27 EU Member States in terms of job creation and the second most competitive economy in the European Jobs and Growth Monitor;

notes that exports continue to grow, inward investment continues to strengthen and the pipeline of new business start-ups is strong;

confirms that Ireland is still one of the top ten competitive small economies in the world;

acknowledges that this performance has ensured rising living standards and improved quality of life for our citizens;

supports in particular the continuing strong performance in employment creation, solid management of the public finances, investment in infrastructure in the context of the National Development Plan and rate of inward investment;

recognises the Government's commitment to upskilling the workforce through its implementation of the National Skills Strategy;

acknowledges the successful filling of strategic skills gaps through the effective implementation of new employment permits arrangements including a new green card scheme;

acknowledges Ireland's success in job creation with now over 2.1 million people at work;

acknowledges the evidence of our continued competitiveness following the recent announcements by companies such as Genzyme, Zimmer, Green Isle, Lancaster, Service Source, DePuy, Citco, Equifax, IBM, Vistakon, Ivax-Teva;

notes the number of initiatives taken by Government to strengthen national competitiveness and which will underpin future economic growth including the implementation of the recommendations of the Small Business Forum, the Better Regulation Forum, the Expert Group on Future Skills, the Enterprise Strategy Group, and the High Level Group on Manufacturing;

supports the Government's commitment to make Ireland a leading knowledge and innovation economy and the achievements of the Strategy for Science Technology and Innovation which will strengthen further our performance taking into account the emergence of competition from the new and emerging economies including India and China; and

welcomes the recent reports on Ireland's Implementation of the Lisbon Strategy for jobs and growth which has been positively received by the EU Commission."

I welcome the opportunity to address the House on this subject and to recall and articulate the substantial achievement of modern Ireland in transforming the economy and increasing competitiveness. I note Deputy Varadkar asked that we not indulge in giving a history lesson tonight. He then proceeded to give a very unusual version of history, criticising the great Seán Lemass, who is widely regarded by historians as the architect of a modern, open, export-led economy. He moved quickly through the barren years that Fine Gael had spent in Opposition seeking to convince the House that this was the period which actually turned the economy around. We shall leave that to historians to discuss, perhaps, at a later date.

We need balance and perspective in terms of our assessment of the economy. We are very clear as regards both our achievements and, indeed, the challenges of the future. I shall reiterate to the House that the Government's objective is to build and protect employment. That has been at the top of our agenda for the last ten years. For Deputy Ring or anybody else to say it has not, is pure nonsense. The reality is that the employment performance of the last decade has been extraordinary. Even in 2007 alone, more than 80,000 jobs were created, an extraordinary amount.

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