Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The beginning of the jobs plan states that governments do not create jobs. That is certainly true of this Government. The majority of the State's employment is found in small to medium-sized enterprises, SMEs. Some 2,200 new businesses open every month. However, 1,400 businesses also close every month. Whenever we discuss this issue with the Government, it tells us that steps forward are being taken. While there have been some steps forward, for example, in terms of foreign direct investment, there have also been major steps back. On balance, the latter worsen the State's unemployment situation.

Last week, the Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation received evidence from the Irish Exporters Association, IEA. Like us, it has seen a vacuum develop within the supports for SMEs. The city and county enterprise boards, CEBs have been in a state of chaotic limbo since Mr. Batt O'Keeffe was the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation. The evidence to the committee suggests this situation is costing jobs.

I do not mean this personally, but there is a vacuum in this area because there is a vacuum in the Department. Ineptitude in the Minister of State's small enterprise section is allowing a critical sector that is heavily dependent on job creation to flounder. We are dealing not only with significant economic challenges, but also with a lack of leadership on the part of the Minister of State. The Government has been in power for nearly 18 months, yet he was unable to provide a date for when the new regime would be in place. Will he show some leadership today and indicate the date on which the regime will start?

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