Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)

There has been an overall reduction in the unit labour cost of approximately 7%, which is welcome. Energy costs are decreasing and we have become more cost-competitive in the mid-west in line with decisions taken and the changes to the general state of the economy. The report identified all these issues. It is important to differentiate between national and local issues and ensure that we continue to invest.

There was some talk of a lack of investment in the mid-west and of ignoring the region with regard to investment and infrastructure. The region has done exceptionally well because of the efforts of Members on all sides of the House to campaign for infrastructural investment. The Ennis bypass and the ongoing construction of the road between Gort and Crusheen are cases in point. At a time when there has been a reduction in the amount spent on capital projects, commencing the work on the route between Gort and Galway is vital. The tunnel in Limerick will provide very significant infrastructure to assist in the development of Shannon Airport. Quite a bit of money has been spent on the airport over the years.

The mid-west region has not been ignored. There has been investment in the western rail corridor and the station at Sixmilebridge has been opened. I hope there will be an announcement very shortly on the re-opening of a train station at Crusheen. These are all vital investments in infrastructure of which the Government can be proud. To suggest that we ignored the region in good times is wrong, although that is not to say there is not a difficulty at present. Issues arise in many areas nationally but a unique issue arises on foot of the loss of 2,000 Dell jobs.

We must look to what we have in the region. There is an exceptionally good tourism market. It is suffering at present because of the recession across Europe and the United States. The United States was a great feeder of visitors to Ireland. We must be more competitive and aggressive in marketing the mid-west. We should certainly pull up our socks regarding tourism marketing. We must be much more clever about the use or our resources and target them such that they will give the mid-west a competitive edge, not over other regions in Ireland but over other destinations throughout Europe. If we work well collectively, it will be to the benefit of all concerned.

I recognise the efforts being made to create jobs for the unemployed. The work being done by the Minister of State, Deputy Dara Calleary, who is to visit the region next week, must be noted. He has been dealing with people individually to assist in the design of an education and training programme with a view to advancing their careers. This is the correct approach. The allocation of money, not directly but through the provision of necessary training courses, represents the best way to proceed.

The effort of the Government regarding the European globalisation fund has been one of the most important aspects of assisting people to meet their immediate needs. We must work collectively to ensure the existence of a framework that will allow enterprise to evolve and allow us to return to what we do best in the region.

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