Dinny McGinley (Donegal South West, Fine Gael)

On this, our first day back after the summer recess, it is entirely appropriate that the Fine Gael Private Members' motion deals with what has become a critical unemployment situation. We are currently facing several crises in regard to finance, banking, the health system, education and in regard to crime. The most serious of all is the unemployment crisis where 460,000 people are out of work, the highest since records were first compiled, probably at the foundation of the State. It is a terrible indictment of this Government and its predecessor. This Government has allowed unemployment to escalate for the past three years until it has reached the current level.

The Government's priority seems to be bailing out the banks and ensuring zombie banks are kept alive through transfusions of billions of euro with no prospect of a return. If a percentage of that money were ploughed into job creation, the unemployment problem would not be as critical. There is nothing that tears the heart out of a community and breaks its spirit unemployment. There are two cohorts in our society where the huge increase in unemployment is being felt most seriously. The first is middle aged people who have lost their jobs through redundancy when factories and businesses close. Such people have little or no hope of finding employment for the rest of their lives. That is a dismal prospect. Second, and perhaps even more seriously, are the 100,000 young people under 25 years of age who are unemployed. There are young, energetic, enthusiastic and highly qualified people throughout the State, including engineers, architects, solicitors, surveyors and so on, who are unable to find jobs.

In my area I know of highly qualified engineers who have been out of work for two or three years and are heading to Australia and other areas. Last Sunday I was at mass in a little church near Gortahork where I met several young men barely 20 years of age who will head off to Australia this week. They told me they did not have jobs arranged but have many friends already working out there and they are more confident of securing employment there than in Donegal or anywhere else here. The emigration of young boys and girls is breaking the spirit of communities and tearing their hearts out. The Government has not yet woken up to the seriousness of the situation. Fine Gael's NewEra plan which proposed the creation of 100,000 jobs was scorned and cold water was poured on it. Lo and behold, the Government has eventually seen the light. It pulled the rabbit out of the hat recently with its proposal to create 300,000 jobs during the next few years. That proposal has as much credibility as had the Minister telling us last year that Anglo Irish Bank would cost us only €4.5 billion. We await what he has to say tomorrow.

The industrial base in County Donegal has been decimated. Our traditional industries such as textiles and so on are gone. Agriculture is at a low ebb, as is fishing, and tourism is non-existent. These are the areas we must focus on if we are to create jobs. The motion before us is constructive. It contains good proposals, including abolition of the travel tax which would result in more people coming into the country thus helping the tourism industry. Measures can be taken to assist the fishing industry and agriculture. PRSI is a burden to the many people wishing to start up in business and employ people. If these issues are addressed it would be a step towards addressing the serious problems we face. The unemployment problem will break the hearts and back of this country unless it is addressed.

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on this motion. It is entirely appropriate it is the first item on the agenda on behalf of Fine Gael on the resumption of the Dáil following the summer recess.

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