Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this important Bill and I congratulate the Minister of State on bringing it before the House. Over the last year, I have made many representations to him and his team in the Department on behalf of employers concerning employment permits. This legislation is before us because of the Minister of State's determination to modernise the system. This includes not only reforming it but also streamlining the process, which is welcome. In fairness to the Minister of State and his Department, turnaround times for processing applications have reduced in recent months. This is significant, especially when the number of applications in hand has increased by 50%.

Many employers, however, still find the process of applying for work permits frustrating, with applications taking far too long to process. As part of the reforms being introduced, I ask the Minister of State to establish a new website, similar to one deployed by the Passport Office, where applicants can monitor the progress of their applications. I strongly believe that posting videos on such a website to advise people on how to apply for work permits and identifying the common issues which lead to unsuccessful applications would be advantageous. Employers who contact me often complain they cannot get any feedback from officials once an application is lodged. This must also change.

I looked at the critical skills occupation list and the list of ineligible occupations and I will give one example in this regard. The Clare Youth Service contacted me this week. It wishes to employ a person and it has advertised the post for the last several months. It cannot get anyone. Youth and community work, however, is on the ineligible list of occupations and, therefore, it is not possible to secure a work permit for someone to undertake this role. I ask the Minister of State to examine this issue.

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