Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein)

I would like an extra minute due to interruptions. Now that I have the Minister's attention, I tell her that there were 8,000 people on the live register in Donegal, but today there are around 23,000 people on the register. Emigration is a big issue in our county. Thousands of our young people across the county have emigrated. When unemployment has trebled in a county that has historically suffered from disadvantage, then how in the name of God can the Minister possibly justify cutting community employment schemes? She should double or treble the contribution towards these projects. These projects are on the front line and they deal with the devastation that has been caused.

The reason I wanted the Minister's attention is that she was such a passionate opponent of what the last Government did. I remember her being so prominent on the television. I used to watch her at home on news reports as one of the leading voices against the impact of what has happened. How can she possibly stand over cutting the funds to community employment in a county like Donegal, not to mind the other disadvantaged areas of the State? How can she possibly stand over cutting projects that provide support to young people, the elderly, crèches, community resource centres and tidy towns committees? This is the thread that holds our communities together. At a time when we face such economic hardship, some of the few good news stories come from such people in those centres. They are the "can do" people who are rolling up their sleeves and meeting the demands the Government makes of them in respect of local leadership and positivity. The very people who are providing that leadership in local communities are seeing these cuts.

I am happy to provide the Minister with the details of the meeting after my contribution. I will send her an e-mail about it. I ask the Minister to become again the woman, the leader she was before she assumed her position last February. I ask her to look into her heart, to remember what she has stood for all her life. I reiterate what I have said before that I do not presume to be a better person than the Minister nor do I consider myself to be a more decent person than her. I do not believe that I care more about these issues than the Minister does. However, she needs to prove me right. She needs to put it into action. She knows the impact of this crisis on communities which have been historically disadvantaged and which suffer from unemployment and all the resultant challenges. I ask her not to take from those at the front line; please do not undermine the morale and spirit of those local leaders whom we need to help get this country back on top again. That is my appeal to the Minister and I thank her for giving me her attention.

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