Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

I presume Deputy Doherty is referring to the Government's commitment to introduce a jobs budget. The Government has given a commitment to introduce, in the early part of its life, a budget to provide measures that will generate and support employment creation. As Deputies will agree, the most important step needed to get the country back on its feet and the economy moving again is to get people back to work. The purpose of the jobs budget is to introduce measures which will enable jobs to be created and get some movement in our economy.

Various Departments with line responsibility for employment creation and support are working on and making inputs into this process. Once the process is completed, the jobs budget will be introduced in the House and the finance Bill which arises from it obviously will be published thereafter. In the meantime, the Government would be glad to receive proposals or suggestions from individual Members or political parties. Any such proposals would be examined by the Department of Finance.

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