Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

Deputy Martin said that the jobs strategy is not working. It would be wonderful to be able to report job creation figures like we had back in the 1990s when the then Minister, Deputy Bruton, was announcing 1,000 new jobs a week. Clearly, it is the kind of economic policy position to which we would like to return, where we were competitive, export driven and jobs were being created at significant levels.

It is true to say that the current strategy has realised 1,000 new foreign investment jobs a month over the past period and that employment has stabilised. While the unemployment numbers are much too high, we are creating more jobs than are now being lost, which is a sign of confidence in its own way. The figures for growth have been revised to 0.7% increase for this year, which is very much in excess of the eurozone and euro area in general, and it is projected to be 2% for next year. These figures have been referred to by other independent commentators.

I put it to the Deputy that there already 5,000 places on the Springboard scheme, announced by the Department of Education and Skills. Only yesterday the Minister, Deputy Quinn, announced a further 6,000 higher educations places for the unemployed. There are more than 5,000 places for young unemployed graduates on the JobBridge scheme, which is private sector driven and has been of enormous significance. When one speaks to employers who have taken on young graduates who are employed on that scheme, the majority of them are exceptionally pleased with the quality of the young personnel they get and many assume responsibilities permanently in those places. The Minister, Deputy Burton, is following through the Pathways to Work scheme, which affects the young and not so young.

From that point of view changes have had to be made here. The Deputy will be well aware that when his party was in government and small businesses approached banks, money was provided hand over fist as if there was never a requirement to pay anything but that is not the situation now. That is the reason the Government published the legislation in respect of partial loan credit guarantees in order that small and medium enterprises can have the flexibility, working with banks, to be able to draw and have access to credit, which we discussed last week, in the interests of employment and taking on new people. The same applies in the case of the micro-finance agency, a model of which is now to be worked on, which should provide up to €100 million for lending to small enterprises at commercial rates.

The Deputy mentioned issues such as the situation that applies here in general for business. There is no doubt that the retail sector is under pressure. If one travels to any town in the country, one can see evidence of that. There are reasons for it in terms of a lack of confidence and a loss of consumer confidence. That is the reason that for each of the last four months, despite the capacity to spend consumers are making other choices. It took some persistence to restore clarity and decisiveness about our corporation tax situation, about which there was some confusion and misinterpretation last year.

We have messed around in this country for a long time with our strategy to deal effectively with the broadband issue. The Minister, Deputy Rabbitte, is now dealing with that and world class speeds can become available to business and a programme for the next young generation is being connected to schools.

The Deputy mentioned the hospitality sector. The decision to reduce VAT to 9% from 13% has resulted in 11,000 jobs in that sector. If the Deputy talks to those working in the sector, they will tell him that it has been a direct injection to their benefit. The same applied in the case of the reduction of PRSI for employers for the lower paid. The Government has set out its strategy for the next year in the hospitality sector for the Gathering. We hope to being in another 350,000 people to the country during the course of 2013 for those occasions, which will be of direct extra benefit to the hospitality sector.

These are challenging times, as the Deputy is aware. I do not accept that the jobs strategy is not working. It is now beginning to have effect. In dealing with 400,000 people on the live register - 130,000 of whom work three-day weeks and part-time and others who sign on while they are retired until they reach pension age - clearly, those who require significant motivation are those who are in a rut, who do not see any hope or do not have the confidence to project themselves in a way that possibly they can. The Pathways to Work, Springboard and JobBridge schemes and other areas, plus decisions to put responsibility down to local authority level for enterprise boards and enterprise operations will have a significant impact in the months ahead. For its part, the Government's priority will be to focus on that jobs and business area, clear those blockages and open those doors in order that business will have a genuine environment in which to thrive.

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