Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North-West Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I take this opportunity to congratulate my colleagues, the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton, and the Minister of State, Deputy Nash, on the work they are doing to facilitate job creation. The Action Plan for Jobs has been very successful since 2012, during which period some 90,000 new jobs were created. Not even the greatest optimist could have foreseen such a level of success. Unemployment has been reduced from 15.1% to less than 10%. It is important to acknowledge the work of the Minister and Minister of State, as well as the efforts of the former Minister of State, Deputy John Perry, towards achieving that target. Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation is one of our most successful Ministries and that trend is continuing. I am delighted that the national plan, having been so successful, is being rolled out into the eight regions, each of which will have its own plan and strategy. I welcome the work done by the Minister and Minister of State in going out to consult with both private and public bodies, chambers of commerce and various agencies for the purposes of formulating strategies and plans based on the unique characteristics of the various regions. All of the regions have different strengths, challenges and opportunities for the future which can be capitalised on and exploited fully for the purposes of creating jobs.

I am pleased to have this opportunity to comment on the implications for the diaspora of the spring economic statement. The statement has received a strong response from Irish citizens all over the world. Irish people living abroad are very interested in what is happening here and modern communications methods mean they can read about and even watch events and announcements as they happen. A number of the measures outlined in yesterday's statement will have a positive impact on members of our diaspora. As the economy continues to grow and recover, many of those who left Ireland are now thinking of returning home. It is hoped that we will return to the scenario of net inward migration by 2017, and the proposals outlined yesterday will be an important step in that direction.

The spring statement document states:

The economic growth forecast by the Department of Finance is driven by an increase in participation and net outward migration is expected to cease next year with a return to inward migration from 2017 onwards. However this is dependent on the right policies being implemented to ensure that workers are encouraged to find employment and that employers can find the right mix of skills.

It also states: "We have indicated our intention to further lower the burden of taxation on labour, which should encourage emigrants to return home and encourage more workers to come back into the labour force." This is critical. People will not return to Ireland to take up jobs unless it is an attractive option for them to do so. People's circumstances differ and they can return for different reasons, be it that they have accommodation available at home and plan to take over a family business or a family farm, for education purposes for their children or that they simply want to return to Ireland. For those who are considering the option of returning from the point of view of their earnings, unless it is attractive for them to return home and earn more in salary, the same amount or even a little less and make up for that deficiency in salary by the quality of life that we have here, they will not consider doing so. That is a major factor. The commitment given by the Minister yesterday, and confirmed by him again today, of a reduction in the universal social charge and income tax is very important for our diaspora. It is a very important message.

I would like to touch on an issue that was mentioned yesterday, namely, that when people return home they must deal with the demands of our growing population. The current housing supply shortages in certain areas must also be addressed by an increase in house building and the implementation of the Government's construction 2020 strategy. That is a key aspect. We should emphasise the regional strategy. There is a major scarcity of accommodation in Dublin but not in the regions. The availability of accommodation should be one of the selling factors for our regions where there is a plentiful supply.

It is important that those emigrants returning will bring their developed skills, their international experience and their newfound confidence home and use those skills to continue to build our economy. Since my appointment as Minister of State with responsibility for the diaspora in July 2014 I have met numerous emigrant groups abroad. In many of these meetings I have met many Irish people who are keen to return to Ireland to take up jobs appropriate to their expertise.The proposals outlined yesterday ensure that for those who decide to return they can expect to find well-paid jobs in Ireland at this time.

The people I meet all over the world are very proud of what we have achieved in this country. In the period from 2008 to 2011 and up to recent years they more or less kept their heads down, were nearly reluctant to say where they were from as they were being hit with headlines in the Financial Timesof stories of wild west banking and people being irresponsible. Now they are proud of what happened in Ireland and what we are now doing. These are intelligent people and they know that the better our economy is, the better chance they have of returning home, and that the more jobs that are being created in Ireland because of Government policy, the better chance they have of returning. They are very much in keeping with current Government policy because they realise it is the right policy and that it is working. That is a fact. They like what they read in Bloomberg, Forbes and the Financial Times. They like what the rating agencies are saying about Ireland. My colleagues in Sinn Féin can laugh. They are going out trying to spread-----

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