Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I beg the forgiveness of the Chairman. Many questions have been referred to different Departments and there is a suggestion in the replies that we should table questions to different Ministers. The whole notion of the Action Plan for Jobs was a whole of Government approach. Deputy Peadar Tóibín and other Deputies cannot be coming in to the Chamber three days every week trying to ask questions of individual Ministers. Is there some way we can co-ordinate questions so that the Minister of State with responsibility for jobs can bring the information back? We can discuss this again.

I did not get the exact figure for the money lent. Some 116 jobs were created. Advertisements have started running to promote the micro-finance scheme only in the past two weeks even though we are six months into it. Since it was launched, I have been calling for wider promotion of the scheme. Yesterday, at a meeting of the jobs committee in Ballinasloe, the feedback on the scheme was that it is too expensive. I have said this before and I am aware of the issue concerning unsecured loans, which means it must be expensive. However, it is more expensive than what the banks are charging.

A point that can be addressed quicker is the three-year payback. Many people are reluctant to commit to a three-year payback given where their businesses are. If that issue can be examined, it may make the scheme more accessible. There remains a complete lack of awareness about the scheme. It is too expensive and the conditions frighten people away. What is the target in terms of the delivery of jobs? Has the target been revised downwards given the poor take-up to date?

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