Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent)

Those are fine words but they do not mean much on the ground when over 1,200 small businesses across the country have failed in the past two years. We should be building our indigenous sector to stand up and service itself and the country rather than serving the foreign direct investors already here. The report from the Western Development Commission clearly sets out how it can be done. I call on the Taoiseach not to tie himself to the rhetoric but to support industries and allow them to develop jobs. Jobs in small businesses across the country will keep things going. The rhetoric of the Taoiseach is very different to the experience of most people across the country who comprise the economy on which people depend day-to-day for their survival and to stem the tide of emigration. I ask the Taoiseach to look at the Western Development Commission report, see its value and ensure that its recommendations are implemented so that we can have a domestic industry that can stand on its own, not just to service foreign direct investment.

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