Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister for sharing his time. He outlined his Department's intentions and his responsibilities in his contribution and his intention to explore new business possibilities in the areas of renewables, information technology and broadband. Those areas will be where we can become competitive again and they will provide access to new markets which will be a means of creating new jobs.

I welcome the jobs initiative but I acknowledge it is the first of many steps. We must realise we all have a responsibility to put our shoulders to the wheel, to get our heads down, to face into the wind and to try to help recover our economy. I note the jobs initiative has been welcomed by employers in many sectors and they must now face the challenge because the Government is helping by creating the conditions which will help jobs to be retained and new job opportunities to be created.

The jobs initiative focuses on the sectors with existing infrastructure and resources so that these can be exploited as soon as possible for job creation. I refer to areas such as construction. It is right to invest in the housing stock by means of funding for upgrading. The existing capital infrastructure in the tourism sector includes restaurants, hotels and bed and breakfast establishments. This sector could attract additional added-value foreign currency into the country. Our exports are doing well and this is to be welcomed as it shows we are doing something right. We must build on that confidence and find new avenues to new markets. We must play to our strengths.

I welcome in particular the reform in the visa applications system for entry to the country. There is potential for encouraging the thousands of visitors to the London Olympics to visit Ireland and to spend their money in our economy. The Minister should also keep an open mind on offering visas to attract additional foreign students and business people. I refer to countries with emerging strong economies such as India and China. I am sure many business people in those countries would be interested in doing business with Ireland and with Europe.

There has been controversy about the proposal on pensions in the jobs initiative. The pension funds have benefited greatly from significant tax reliefs over many years. The Minister proposes to impose a levy of 0.6% on those funds. I am disappointed at the speed at which the pension fund managers have come out of the traps to say they are passing on that levy to the contributors and savers. Those fund managers need to look at themselves and to take into account their large administration costs and the commission charged to people who have contributed to these funds over many years. I understand they charge quite a large commission compared with other countries.

I have some queries which I ask the Minister of State at the Department of Finance to note. Was the Department in consultation with the fund managers prior to this decision? Why were the pension funds levied? I know that these are straitened times with little or nothing in the cupboard and we have to find funds somewhere.

I wish to give the House some good news for a change. I attended an event in Waterford city last week where an entrepreneurial programme run by the Waterford area partnership introduced 53 new entrepreneurs who are creating new jobs in Waterford and the south-east region. This is a very good programme funded by the Department of Education and Skills from the labour activation fund. The participants are supported by the Department of Social Protection through the back to work enterprise allowance. We need to see more of these programmes funded by co-operation between Departments which incentivise people to come off the live register and to participate in training programmes so that they can become the new entrepreneurs, the new business people and new employers of the future. This is an excellent model which needs to be encouraged and broadened to include a wider cohort across the country.

Traditional industries are now being regarded as providing the main planks for the recovery of the economy. Our exports are strong and the agrifood sector is being relied upon more than ever. Agriculture has to remain a top priority for Government. It is a labour-intensive industry covering food production and forestry among others. I refer to the significant potential for job creation in the tourism sector. In my view the previous Government took its eye off the ball with regard to manufacturing industry. This is a strong industry in my constituency and in the south-east region in general and we have suffered greatly because it has taken a big hit. As our competitiveness is restored there will be new opportunities in the manufacturing sector and we can continue to achieve access to new markets. I ask the Minister of State to note that the job of Government should be to assist small manufacturing companies to access these new markets so that they can manufacture high quality products. Manufacturing will create labour-intensive employment and many skilled craftsmen and tradespeople could benefit from new markets in India and China.

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