Mary O'Rourke (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate. I thank my constituency colleague, Deputy Penrose, for tabling the original motion.

It has been a worrying and sad feature of constituency clinics during the past six months that one has been visited by sensible men and women who have either lost their jobs or are about to lose them. I never fail to be struck by the poignancy of what they have to say, particularly due to the fact that for some years one was not approached by people in this position because everyone had a job. If one called to a house in the past, four or five of the people living there would be in employment. That was heartening and exciting because I have always been of the view that if one has a job, one has the key to so much else in life. A job gives one confidence, which is a major factor in one's life, and a belief in oneself.

Apart from losing their jobs, many people's morale has plummeted. One will hear individuals asking where, in light of their current age, they might obtain employment. One searches and does one's best to try to find them a suitable position. If an ordinary but well-paid job with the local authority is advertised, one's heart goes out to the many people who compete and would be suitable for it. This is where the work of FÁS must come into play. I have great time for FÁS, although I know there are reviews and investigations going on currently. Despite this, I have found FÁS to be a strong organisation. Its main emphasis is on the customers, the people it wants to see in further training, community employment or moving into a job. This has always been the work of FÁS. Before we throw out the baby with the bath water, I hope emphasis will be placed on the fine work FÁS has done and continues to do. This does not take into account the way FÁS has changed our environment through the fine landscape work in which it has been involved throughout the country.

Our communities have been equally fortunate with the work of the county enterprise boards. We are very lucky in this regard in County Westmeath and I am sure Deputy Penrose would bear that out. Westmeath has an excellent enterprise board with two wonderful women in the positions of chairperson and CEO. Both of them are strong people with the good of the county at heart and they work productively on behalf of small businesses.

In recent years people commented on the number of cranes to be seen on our skyline and saw them as a sign of work and progress, which they were. However, I would prefer to see productive small businesses employing between five and 12 people. These small businesses should be encouraged to stay in business. It takes very little to enable a small company stay in business, but it also takes very little to tip it the other way so that it fades away. Whatever methods possible, administrative or financial, must be used to encourage these small businesses to remain in business so they can employ one or two extra people. This would be far better than depending on cranes to boost employment. Cranes disappear quickly. When the job is done the operators pack their traps and leave. They may do good work, but they leave once it is done.

I hope county enterprise boards will be invigorated and will continue to get Government funding to enable them to continue their work. Whatever the result of the investigations into FÁS, I hope FÁS will remain what it has been, the backbone for training and job opportunities for many people.

See this speech in context