Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

That was a well-written speech. The carousel is different to the trampoline. The position is that the fundamentals of dealing with the economy and job creation, as well as tackling difficulties and issues as they arise are a fundamental part of Government. I wish to point out to Deputy Adams that since the then Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Bruton, launched the first Action Plan for Jobs in 2012, some 206,200 new jobs have been created. We had lost our independence to the troika, we wallowed in debt and we had a haemorrhage of emigration from so many sectors. Given the sacrifices that the people have had to put up with over those years, we have brought about a situation whereby we are in a better position. There was strong jobs growth in 2016 and a total of 65,100 new jobs. These men and women are going to work every day. The figures show that, for the first time, the number of sustainable non-construction jobs has risen beyond what it was in boom times. This means the economy is very much on the right track; it is far from chaos. Unemployment dropped by 21%, or 40,000, in 2016. By any standard, that is a significant decrease. The unemployment rate is 6.8% - down from 15.2% - and is heading in the right direction.

I have made this point to Deputy Adams before. I welcome the fact that the Workplace Relations Commission, WRC, has engaged again in respect of the difficulties between unions and Bus Éireann. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, has been very consistent in his statements, saying this issue will only be resolved through constructive and realistic dialogue. Deputy Adams knows that. Obviously, these WRC-initiated discussions are an important step forward, complex, difficult and tension-filled though they may be.

The Government urges all parties to use the experience and knowledge of the WRC to assist this process. I do not wish to comment on specific elements of proposals that are the subject of negotiations, including any proposals that might arise regarding changes to Expressway services. I encourage others to respect the integrity and experience of the WRC process and to allow both sides to conclude their discussions.

I have stated on numerous occasions that the NTA will continue to use its statutory powers to ensure there will be continued public transport connectivity for local communities across Ireland, and the Minister strongly supports that. It has been done in the past and will be done again in the future. The Deputy can take it that the Ministers to whom he refers have no intention of collapsing the Executive here, as Sinn Féin did in the North.

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