Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will reply to Deputy Stanton directly in that regard. In relation to any changes that may arise - I do not want to pre-empt that - I believe I can do so through a statutory instrument.

On the situation in Canada, I attended a meeting of the OECD in Paris yesterday. I sat beside the Canadian minister responsible for small business and employment for two days and we discussed the matter at length. Trying to secure talent in the western world is extremely difficult for all countries. It is not only a European Union phenomenon. It is the same in north America. The US has something like 10 million jobs and only 5 million candidates for them. The same is true of Canada on a smaller scale, but in the same proportions. That certainly presents a huge opportunity for Ireland.

I was taken by the fact that a number of employers I have met make the obvious case that it is a barrier to bringing employees under intra-company transfer. One serious concern is that they will transfer, but there will be a huge mental health and societal impact if spouses or partners are unable to work. They are in a country where their language is not spoken. Their partners have come to do a job with a big salary and work long hours. Needless to say, after six months they just want to go home. The fact that they cannot access the workforce or cannot fundamentally be part of society is a major drain that is also a major economic drain. I will definitely take the points under advisement.

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