Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

The outturn figures for last year show that between 5,750 and 5,900 jobs were supported by the scheme. In other words, the 2,000 jobs promised under the jobs initiative materialised. Incidentally, I do not know if I should congratulate the Deputy or commiserate with him. Either way, my intentions are good. Unfortunately, as the Deputy indicates in the question, the allocation to the Better Energy: Homes scheme has been reduced owing to the overall reduction imposed on the Government by the memorandum of understanding. However, the allocation still compares favourably with the figure from the 2011 budget. While the latter provided €60 million for the scheme, the 2012 budget provides €76 million for the scheme. As Deputy Collins noted, I was able to secure an additional €30 million from the jobs initiative last year, and this boosted employment. It is our expectation that the scheme will support approximately 4,500 jobs this year. Whether this figure will be exceeded, I cannot say at this stage.

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