Niall Collins (Limerick West, Fianna Fail)

This is an important debate and I am grateful for the opportunity to participate in it. The Government is taking active measures to support people who are in jobs at present through the enterprise stabilisation fund, the enterprise subsidy scheme and the PRSI exemption which was announced in the budget. It has also tried to create jobs through Enterprise Ireland and the IDA. The itineraries conducted by those agencies, whereby they bring investors to areas throughout the country and particularly to the mid-west, are published. The view that nothing is happening should not be conveyed by this House because that is far from the case.

In the course of a similar debate a number of months ago Deputy English and I debated the Fine Gael "NewERA" document. He challenged what I said. The document promises 105,000 jobs to be delivered by Fine Gael. I asked how many would come to my constituency of County Limerick and to the mid-west region. I was told at the time to read the document. I have read it a number of times but there is still no indication in it for the people I represent in Limerick-----

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