Conor Lenihan (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

-----skill shortages have been identified. In the IT, banking and many other sectors, specific skills are required that are not available in the Irish labour market. Obviously, a stringent test is applied to employers who make this case. It is not true that employers can lightly invoke the reason of skill shortages. Rather, they must rigorously prove that an appropriate person is not available or cannot be accessed within the domestic or EEA labour market.

Deputy Naughten is correct concerning the issues regarding science and maths. There is a considerable difficulty associated with the quality and standard of leaving certificate and university students in the area of science and maths. It is a very considerable problem in that only 16% of the leaving certificate cohort take higher level maths.

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