Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach the way he has put in place an internal management process for reporting on a quarterly basis as outlined in his Department's Strategy Statement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49719/12]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach the way his Department supports the whole of Government structures to monitor and report on progress in key areas such as economic growth and job creation as outlined in his Department's Statement of Strategy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49722/12]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Taoiseach the progress that has been made in the carrying out of an analysis of skills and policy capacity with his Department as envisaged under the Department's Strategy Statement. [52242/12]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on the internal management process he has established within his Department to involve reporting on a quarterly basis on progress made on his Department's programme of change and on each of his Department's strategic priorities as set out in the Strategy Statement 2011-2014. [52244/12]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach if he will outline the particular policy actions that have been taken by him and his Department in relation to the strategic priority of creating jobs and growth as outlined in his Department's strategy statement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55546/12]

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Taoiseach the way in which he has managed and supported whole of Government structures to monitor and report on progress on the areas of economic growth and job creation, improving the public finances and providing a fully functioning banking sector as outlined in his Department's Strategy Statement 2011-2014. [2322/13]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Taoiseach if he will provide an update on the implementation of EU 2020 strategy as outlined in his Departments Strategy Statement 2011-2014; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2355/13]

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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To ask the Taoiseach the progress made in terms of his Departments strategy statements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2761/13]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 8, inclusive, together.

My Department's strategy statement sets out the key objectives for my Department for the period 2011 to 2014. The focus of my Department is to ensure that Government policy is progressed across the whole of Government and it has one key programme which is to support the Taoiseach and the Government. The strategy statement is aligned to the Government's key priorities and policies, and sets out eight long-term goals as follows: tackling the economic crisis, with a particular focus on jobs and growth; ensuring Ireland plays a full and effective role in all aspects of the European Union; overseeing the full implementation of the programme for Government; providing excellent support services for the Taoiseach and Government; helping to reform and restore trust in the institutions of the State and in Ireland’s reputation at home and abroad by learning lessons from the past; helping to renew and transform the public service; helping to ensure that Government policies and services support a socially inclusive and fair society; and helping to maintain peace and to further enhance relationships on the island of Ireland and between Ireland and Britain.

It also identifies horizontal action areas in support of these goals, including policy capacity, implementation, communications, strategic thinking, working with others and changing the culture and rebuilding trust.

The strategy statement reflects the significant restructuring of the Department following the election of the new Government in 2011, including the establishment of the Economic Management Council, a new Cabinet committee structure, a programme for Government office, an office of the Tánaiste, a new integrated European affairs division and the transfer of staff and functions relating to public service reform to the new Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.

Earlier this year my Department carried out a skills and qualifications survey of staff working in the Department and prepared a new human resources strategy to ensure that it is well placed to support me and the Government as we tackle the challenges facing the country. The Department's policy capacity has also been enhanced through the secondment of staff with relevant skills from the National Economic and Social Council and Forfás, as well as the recruitment of a number of staff as part of the new Government economic and evaluation service. The Department has also recruited some staff on a temporary basis for the EU Presidency.

My Department supports me and the Government in making progress on the goals in the strategy statement in a number of ways, including through providing secretariat for meetings of the Government, the Economic Management Council and Cabinet committees, chairing senior officials groups, supporting me in my role as a member of the European Council and the work of the programme for Government office. As regards monitoring of the action plan for jobs, my Department and the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation co-chair a committee which monitors the progress made by Departments and agencies on completing the actions outlined in the plan. This committee reports to the Cabinet committee for economic recovery and jobs.

In addition, my Department co-ordinates the preparation of Ireland's national reform programme, NRP, and related progress reports under the Europe 2020 strategy, incorporating reporting from Ministers and Departments with responsibility for targets and measures in their respective areas. In keeping with previous years, and the road map for the European Semester 2013, the date for NRP submissions is set for mid-April and my Department is commencing arrangements for the preparation of Ireland's update. This will allow for an update to be provided on the implementation of the policies identified to deliver on each of the five targets under Europe 2020.

All of the work I have outlined seeks to deliver a whole-of-Government response to the challenges facing the country, including critical priorities such as economic growth and job creation. Progress is reviewed on a regular basis by my Department's management advisory committee and by senior management in each division. The Secretary General holds a quarterly meeting with all staff at which progress across all aspects of the strategy statement is reviewed. Progress reports on key policy areas are also considered by the Government and/or the relevant Cabinet committee on a regular basis. My Department's annual report for 2012 will give an overview of progress on all aspects of the strategy statement.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I wish the Taoiseach well on assuming the Presidency of the Council of the European Union recently. He has got off to a flying start. It behoves all Members of the House to indicate our strong support for the Taoiseach in the critical six months ahead. I wish to commit the support of our party to the Taoiseach in the initiatives he will take.

The strategy statement from the Taoiseach's Department is a very impressive document. When he launched it the Taoiseach spoke about the transformative effect it would have on the way government is conducted. To date, we have seen little of a transformative nature happening, or at least little of a transformative nature that is positive. I have in mind what happened in the period preceding the last budget. We discussed this on the last occasion I was in the House for Taoiseach's questions. Rather than a very active participation by all Ministers in the process of Cabinet and doing what the core principle of the strategy says should be done, when it refers to the importance of open discussion and listening to discordant voices, the Economic Management Council appears to have made the major decisions, and the leaks and informed statements from Ministers in the aftermath of the budget suggest that the worst and most unfair cuts were only revealed by the Economic Management Council to the Cabinet when it was too late to change them.

Last week, the Government made a major announcement about a special Cabinet meeting on jobs. Given the cross-cutting role the Taoiseach is now taking across all Government Departrments, one could not but be a little surprised that he was having a special Cabinet meeting on jobs at this point when one would have expected, given the strategy statement, that the key issue of jobs would have been a critical issue in all Cabinet meetings. Perhaps the Taoiseach would explain that situation further.

The Central Statistics Office, CSO, figures show there has been little progress in the area of labour activation measures. The Taoiseach needs to do more in this area and in the area of re-skilling. A Private Members' motion last week set out the real difficulties that are arising in post-leaving certificate courses, PLCs, and further education, where the cutback by the Minister for Education and Skills is making it more difficult for people to access re-skilling opportunities. Where re-skilling opportunities are in place the reduction in the pupil-teacher ratio is creating a situation where those innovative courses and skilled course deliverers are at risk of losing their places to deliver these re-skilling opportunities.

Finally, I was struck by a supreme irony last week when one of my colleagues, Deputy Dara Calleary, tabled a question to the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, about the issue of employment and jobs. The Minister's response was that the matter of jobs was the responsibility of his colleague the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Bruton. The theory of a whole-of-Cabinet approach is absolutely superb, but if our experience of the reality is something quite different, the Taoiseach's strategy, while a great document, is not being implemented in an effective way. What is the Taoiseach's response to that?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for his support for the country in the context of the Government holding the Presidency of the European Union. Ireland will not have the opportunity to hold the Presidency again until 2026 or 2027, so there has been a focus from Europe on an effective Presidency by Ireland.

The Government has prepared well for this. We have had a good start with the Commission, the European Parliament, the Council and through personal engagement by 14 Ministers this week with the committees of the European Parliament across a range of issues. From that point of view the conclusion of a multi-annual framework or budget for the European Union from 2014 to 2020 will be an important element of this Presidency, and the Presidency is very much lined up with the President of the EU Council, Herman von Rompuy, in that regard. Assuming that he decides it will be opportune to hold a meeting in February to conclude on a figure for the budget for 2014 to 2020, that will not be the end of the game. Under the Lisbon treaty the European Parliament must give its consent and approval for any such budget and the Presidency, held by Ireland, will have to deal with the Parliament in respect of getting that through.

That leads on to the capacity to deal with the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and up to 70 legislative measures, or files as they are called in Europe, to be dealt with by the Parliament. The European elections take place next year and this will be the last Presidency before the electoral process at European level begins to focus on those elections. In that sense, the Deputy can take it that the Government will work very hard on its responsibilities for dealing with these matters.

With regard to the Economic Management Council, the Deputy will be aware that the ceilings for spending have been set for the next number of years. We have set out the strategy for what we must do to get our deficit below 3% by 2015. On the run up to the budget this year, these matters are always, and have always been, subject to the usual cynical comment that things are leaking from Cabinet or from individual meetings and so forth.

The more people around the table - 30 or 40 officials from different Departments - the more things are likely to get scattered. The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform sat down with individual Ministers and had bilateral meetings about their spending ceilings and proposals to make reductions in their budgets for 2013. By and large, that was dealt with successfully. The Economic Management Council had to deal with a number of issues and did that to the extent that we were able to conclude the budget for 2013 with a hell of a lot less of the speculation, allegation and rumour that had floated around during the preparation of the 2012 budget. Under the European semester, the budget may be earlier this year. The date is not fixed yet but it could be a number of weeks earlier than last year's budget announcement because we are required to be more open about these things. We do not object to that but the final decisions are obviously a matter for Government.

On the jobs question, I specifically called a meeting last week to deal with the issue of jobs and employment. The reason I did is normal Cabinet meetings cover 20 to 25 items, including reports, international material and so on. The Deputy is aware of this and in the course of any normal meeting, there are opportunities and potential for job creation but I thought this would be important given the fact that a change of attitude is clearly beginning to happen here. Over the past three days, some people in the media were more than surprised to find the extent of positive news emanating from decisions that are being made, which are a reflection of interest in the country. That is in everybody's interest in terms of confidence. I felt it appropriate to ask every Minister to prepare a specific memorandum relevant to his or her own Department dealing with short term, medium term and longer term opportunities for employment because the problem here and in other countries was that when a recession ended, it normally took a decade for that to filter down to the ground to the average citizen in terms of their understanding that it was over and, therefore, that opportunities presented themselves. I want to short-circuit that. In essence, we are injecting the capacity to grow the economy and, on top of that, to make decisions at political level that can impact on job creation in the short term. Clearly, there is serious potential for jobs in the energy, communications, marine, agriculture and construction sectors.

This leads me to the reason I did that. I hope to have regular, or, as appropriate, Cabinet meetings focused on employment and job creation where I can follow through on the targets and objectives set by each Minister as they affect the Deputy's constituency and the country as a whole and that will be positive. When I look at the live register, I am not happy with the level of unemployment, though I noticed in the CSO figures a revolving number of approximately 36,000 every month in 2012 where people signed off and others signed back on. Nobody wants people out of work, yet during the three years prior to the Government's election in 2011, some 250,000 jobs were lost in the private sector. I am glad to report that over the past 12 to 18 months, between 12,000 and 20,000 new jobs were created in the private sector, which is a positive trend. The JobBridge scheme is a private sector initiative and it was intended to create 5,000 positions but more than 13,000 have been filled to date and it has been well accepted internationally as a model for the kind of thing we should do. I said previously that, on the way back from Bucharest recently, I called to see the Austrian chancellor who is preparing for the next European Presidency. Austria's level of youth unemployment is approximately 3% whereas it is 29% here, which is much too high. We have lessons to learn from other countries about how they deliver on opportunities for young people, in particular, to get into training, new careers and so on.

From a point where our reputation was in shreds and we had no capacity to enter any market, I am glad to see that interest rates have fallen from more than 14% to approximately 3.5%. I am glad to see the sale of Bank of Ireland paper recently for €1 billion, which is more money back for the taxpayer. That is important but it is only a beginning and, obviously, we have a long way to go. The continuing negotiations at European level in respect of the ECB, Eurogroup and ECOFIN are of critical importance to us to exit the programme successfully.

The Deputy referred to reform and transforming government. We have made a number of decisions, including the establishment of the HR shared services centre for the Civil Service, PeoplePoint, which will reduce head count by 17% and costs by more than 25%. Last June, the Government agreed to implement the mandatory use of framework agreements for commonly produced goods and services, which is expected to yield between €30 million and €40 million in savings across the public service annually. Last September, we agreed to set up the national procurement office, which would produce savings of up to €600 million if it is handled properly, and the Minister of State at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Brian Hayes, is dealing with that. We announced the radical reform of local government, which will be the biggest in 100 years, to save the taxpayer more than €430 million by replacing 114 local authorities with 31 integrated authorities and reducing the number of members from 1,627 to 950. I appointed the fiscal council independently to give its view on the country. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform publishes online purchase orders for the procurement of goods and services worth more than €20,000 as a first step in extending that process to all Departments. We still have a long way to. We amended the Freedom of Information Acts to give greater transparency and we passed legislation to overhaul political donations. We also passed criminal justice legislation to tackle white collar crime and so on.

Clearly, our focus has to be on increasing our competitiveness, putting the structures in place to sort our problems with our public finances and changing the way business is done, for instance, in the health sector and through strong labour market activation measures within the Department of Social Protection such as JobBridge, the new Intreo service which is linked to the Department of Education and Skills and which published the SOLAS Bill earlier, to address training and opportunities for young people. We are at the two-year mark in this Administration and, for me, restructuring public services and the public finances and a relentless drive to create opportunities for jobs and improve access to credit for small and medium enterprises will grow indigenous confidence, which is what we need to get back.

When people ask whether we can return to where we were, I say we should not go back because in the 2000s, we had a system built on debt, property and recklessness. We need to be competitive through investment and innovation, which is the position we were in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when we were creating 1,000 jobs a week. We have a long way to go to get to that but we are headed in the right direction. These are a few pointers that have us heading in that direction and we intend to keep on with this plan in terms of sorting everything out.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I have three questions and with the Ceann Comhairle's indulgence, I would like to put one now and if there is time later, come back with another, le do thoil.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Yes.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Go raibh maith agat.

In éineacht leis an Teachta Ó Fearghaíl guím áth ar an Taoiseach ina ról mar Uachtarán ar an Aontas Eorpach. Tá difear mór idir an Rialtas agus Sinn Féin, ach ar an ábhar seo tá beannachtaí Shinn Féin ag an Taoiseach. Go n-éirí an t-ádh leis.

One of the major priorities of the Government strategy statement is jobs and growth. The Taoiseach has spoken about monitoring, trying to achieve cohesion and getting everyone working together. On 29 September last, the Government announced a strategic investment fund and indicated that legislative change would be needed to allow for resources to be channelled from the National Pensions Reserve Fund, NPRF, into the productive economy. It is now 2013, the legislative programme has been published and this legislation is not included in it. I presume the heads of the Bill have not been agreed. There does not seem to be any indication that the legislation is due for publication in this term. If this priority was being focused on and monitored, we would be dealing with this important matter in this session. Perhaps the Taoiseach can give us this assurance when he responds to my question.

Funds from the NPRF were to have been channelled into this fund. Sinn Féin has argued for funds from the NPRF to be used to stimulate the economy. The Taoiseach used to rubbish that suggestion in times past. I welcome his conversion to this point of view. The process needs be driven by the Taoiseach's Department and other Departments, particularly the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation.

Can the Taoiseach assure the House, in the ongoing process of Government, that this announcement of 2011 will become a reality? When will that happen? What is the timeframe for that? If there is still a need for legislation when will we see the Bill?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Go raibh maith ag an Teachta Adams. Glacaim lena dhea-ghuí maidir le hUachtaránacht na hEorpa a bheith ag Éirinn. Bíodh sé cinnte go ndéanfaimid ár ndícheall chun é sin a chomhlíonadh go hiomlán.

I can send Deputy Adams the details of the progress being made on the stimulus package announced by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform last year, including the much commented upon primary care health centres, the Grangegorman development, and the major roads developments of Newlands Cross, Gort, Tuam, Ballyvourney and Macroom. Facilities that are the responsibility of the Department of Justice and Equality and the schools initiatives are under way. I would like to see much more. The European Investment Bank is of a mood to invest more in sustainable projects in Ireland. I can give the House the details of those.

The legislation the Deputy refers to should be published during this session and will lead to the creation of NewERA which will, in turn, lead to serious investment in major projects amounting to several billion euro. We have some work to do to finalise the Bill. The negotiations in which we are involved at a European level have the potential to relieve the extent of the country's debt. That will be important psychologically, but economically it will mean that investors and markets will understand that Ireland is in a more relieved economic situation than heretofore, it will be easier for banks to borrow on the market, which they are now tending to do, interest rates will be lower and more flexible and credit will be available for small and medium enterprises to expand and create employment. That is another reason the NPRF made €850 million available in the last fortnight for lending to small and medium enterprises in three different sectors. All these things are to be welcomed.

Many small business people have come through a very difficult time in recent years. I note, however, that 55% of small business now say they expect to employ people in 2013. They are investigating the potential of online sales. The challenge for Government, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and the local enterprise offices is to explain to small operators what credit is on offer and the assistance that can be given through budgetary measures such as PRSI and VAT reductions and whatever the Minister for Finance may decide to add to the Finance Bill. The Deputy is aware that the Minister included ten measures in the budget. Each individually was not of major significance but collectively they are an opportunity for small businesses to make their way to becoming thriving enterprises and employing people.

I expect the legislation during this session. We will have an opportunity to debate it in the House. If we get this right, it will provide capacity for investment in worthwhile projects. I will publish the details of the progress being made on the stimulus package announced by the Minister last year and the preparations for further bundles of schools, facilities under the Department of Justice and Equality and a number of remaining major environmental issues that need to be dealt with.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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In his Department's strategy statement, the Taoiseach highlighted a number of priorities. The top one was jobs and growth. That reflected the Fine Gael campaign slogan which was to get Ireland working. Most people would say the country's priority is jobs, jobs, jobs and jobs again if we are to have any chance of getting out of the mess we were in.

There is an element of the politics of illusion in documents like this. The illusionist uses one hand to distract the audience while the other gets on with the real business. The strategy would be a wonderful document if its noble aspirations for jobs and growth were being delivered upon. The reality, however, is that the Government's projection is that there will be no change in net employment by the end of this year. By the end of 2015, the best case scenario is that we may see a reduction of between 1% and 1.5% in the level of unemployment. The Nevin Institute says that will not materialise and there will, in fact, be an increase in the level of unemployment.

Whenever this point is put to the Taoiseach he mentions some of the, always welcome, job announcements. Of course we all welcome these. I welcome the creation of 500 jobs associated with the development of DCU. What we gain on the swings, however, we lose on the roundabout of austerity. For every job created at least the same number is lost. That has been the case since the Taoiseach and his colleagues entered Government and will continue to be the case until the end of this year, at least. This suggests that the commitment in his strategy document to create jobs and growth is not being delivered upon.

Part of the problem is the oft repeated mantra by many of the Ministers that the Government does not create jobs, it creates the conditions for creating jobs. That is the problem because no one else is going to create the jobs in the current economic climate. The banks certainly are not going to create them. Private investment is very small relative to the huge unemployment hole in our economy. The State must step in and create the jobs otherwise even the Government's own forecasts are for negligible impact on the chronic unemployment crisis.

I ask the Taoiseach if he will re-prioritise and refocus on the issue of jobs. Will he review the Government's approach to employment creation in this State? A 0% change in unemployment by the end of the year is not good enough to offer the Irish people when we are suffering from chronic mass unemployment and emigration.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I agree with Deputy Boyd Barrett on one thing, that jobs should be the priority. As he said himself on four occasions, it is about jobs, jobs, jobs and jobs. We will not have a country we can be proud of and face with courage into the future unless we deal with our problems here. They are our public finances, the structures of the way a number of Departments have operated in the past, and a relentless drive to deal with jobs.

As I said to Deputy Ó Fearghaíl, it is a fact that between 2008 and 2011, 250,000 jobs were lost in the private sector. In the last 12 months, 12,000 jobs have been created in that sector. It is a trend moving in the right direction; it is not by any means where we need to be but we are headed in that direction.

Last week I visited Fleetmatics at Tallaght. This is an Irish company with its global headquarters here in Ireland. It currently has GPS locating systems on 300,000 vehicles worldwide and it is going to expand its business to a truly global sense in the very near future. That company employs in the main IT specialist operators. I was in Sky's Dublin office, which currently employs 490 people and that will increase to more than 1,000 by the end of summer - 900 was the initial figure but it expects to beat 1,000. They are all young, energetic people dealing with what they see as a very competitive situation here in Ireland where the company has set up its own headquarters. Indeed, the humble potato, with a turnover of €100 million in Tayto Park in Ashbourne in County Meath, saw 78 new jobs announced last week in the adjoining facility. These are people who make decisions at this time to invest money and to employ people. We want to see more of that. I was in two places over the last week, one employed 21 people and another employed 10. They are small operators but they have the confidence to make the decisions. I am sure Deputy Boyd Barrett wants this as much I do.

I do not deal in illusions, I must deal with reality. I heard the economist, Mr. Collins from the Nevin Economic Research Institute, say the one thing we can be sure of is that economists will be wrong. They hold a very different view from IBEC, which is projecting a 1.8% growth rate for this year, ahead of most other organisations referring to the potential of the country. If markets are pricing in the fact that Ireland is now in a very different position than it was, that is good. It is a sign of positivity and confidence and that has been reflected in the fact Bank of Ireland was able to sell €1 billion worth of paper recently, which was a big change. The banks are moving to a point of being able to compete on the market without State guarantees, which we hope will end in the period ahead, and enable them return to the markets.

The Deputy is right when he says it is not a case of the Government creating jobs.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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No, the Taoiseach said that.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The public sector has had a major exit in reducing numbers, its cost and its scale. Potential exists now for doing business in a different way, with technology and communications. It is the case - Deputy Boyd Barrett is right - that the responsibility of Government is to create that environment where jobs and investment can take place. Deputy Ó Fearghaíl referred to this also. We need to have our country focused on being competitive,export driven, creative and innovative. I am glad to see the investment made by previous Governments in research, innovation and education is now beginning to pay dividends. Whoever stands here in the next ten years will be in a very different world, with biotechnology, genetics, robotics, nanotechnology and medicine, the Internet and all of the changes that are coming at us with bewildering speed and that will create new jobs and new opportunities.

I had the opportunity on Sunday to meet Mr. Spielberg and hopefully another Oscar winner for the third time, Daniel Day Lewis, in respect of their major production of "Lincoln" and I hope it is an outstanding success. Mr. Spielberg made the point to me that the country offers enormous potential in that area by being consistent in terms of what we offer and having capacity for production. They are very pleased with the creative ingenuity of the Irish personality. Deputy Boyd Barrett accepts that from what has already been achieved over the years. That is why in the budget, section 431 was extended to 2020, giving an opportunity for investment. People of that stature and global influence say these are the things we need. They also say that in our education sector, either at university or the colleges of technology, we should be delving into the enormous potential of the digital era that is coming. That is just part of the process we have to deal with during the Presidency, the putting together of the digital Single Market.

It is all about jobs; Deputy Boyd Barrett and I are as one on this, which is a change. This is very important for every family in the country as we hope to move to a point where there is excitement again in young people's lives, where they can see opportunity and can understand that by difficult decisions having to be made, the consequence is international recognition of being competitive and of confidence in our indigenous economy. By sorting out our public finances, there will be the capacity to lend to businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, which will be the main creators of the next evolution of the Irish economy.

I hope that when this Administration has done its job, this will never happen again and we that we will have put in place a system that is streamlined, effective, competitive, where people's money does not go astray and where there is value for money. In Deputy Boyd Barrett's constituency and Deputy Higgins's constituency, people will be able to say there is an opportunity for job creation. That is what I saw in Tallaght the other day, in Sky's Dublin office and in Ashbourne. There is a growing sense that we have come through a very difficult time but I see higher ground ahead and it is the challenge of Government to assist those entrepreneurs, investors and workers who are prepared to say they will take a chance on this. Hopefully it will work out for them. Some will and some will not be successful but it is important we have that energy and drive evident in our economy and our society. I hope that is where we are leading to now.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Taoiseach for his wide ranging response to the initial questions we put down but I do not know that I learned much. It strikes me the Taoiseach did not spend 14 years on this side of the House without learning much from the master who occupied his seat over many years.

I would like to pick the Taoiseach up on two relevant points. He referred to freedom of information, saying it has been a priority issue for him and he has made positive comments about it. Again, there is a significant difference between what the Taoiseach says and what he does. We have seen in these Houses successive debates on critical issues being closed down. Parliamentary questions to Ministers and to the Taoiseach are regularly refused.

I hear from colleagues that Members of this House are now resorting to the freedom of information process on an ongoing basis. Perhaps the Taoiseach is not aware that such is the case. That practice runs counter to the laudable sentiments he himself expresses.

The Taoiseach also made mention of the health services. He stated in the past that he has increased his co-ordination of Ministers generally and that he has a general oversight of what is happening in the Department of Health. In the context of that and the strategy statement, what did the Taoiseach do last year when it emerged that the budget for the Department of Health was seriously off track and what is he doing to deal with the growing lack of confidence in the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly? While I have a great deal of regard for Deputy Reilly, have known him for many years and he is sincere in his commitment, and while he did win a motion of confidence in this House, I can assure the Taoiseach that he would win no motion of confidence among the people who despair about the current state of the health services.

The Taoiseach stated that currently there are 1.8 million persons on medical cards and that is a growing number. Of course it is growing because incomes right across society are declining. I put it to him that it is paradoxical that the HSE's service plan for 2013 envisages there being 40,000 fewer medical cards in place. Recently I had a meeting - one of an ongoing series of meetings - with the Jack and Jill Children's Foundation, one of the most laudable charitable organisations in this country, run by a man, Mr. Jonathan Irwin, who is a national treasure in terms of the work that he is doing in the area of palliative care for seriously ill children. It offends me, and the Taoiseach must be personally offended, that these small children are encountering inordinate difficulties in having medical cards provided to them and have had in other instances the discretionary medical cards provided to them withdrawn, albeit that their circumstances will never improve and they are on an almost inexorable road in terms of their prognosis and the palliative care they receive. I make a personal plea to the Taoiseach.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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We are dealing with questions to the Taoiseach, not the Minister for Health.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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It certainly is part of the Taoiseach's strategy statement, he has this overarching role and oversight of Departments, and he raised the issue of health. I appeal to the Taoiseach, as a man of very considerable human decency, to look at this particular area.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Freedom of information is being handled by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin. He met the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform to discuss this recently and he is awaiting the response of and proposals from the committee. Following consideration of the views and recommendations of the committee and the drafting of the Bill by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, I expect that Bill to be published in this session.

The general scheme of the Bill is available on the website of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform for all to see. As part of the legislative proposal, freedom of information will be extended to a number of high profile public bodies, including the Central Bank of Ireland, the NTMA and NAMA. Subject to the formal consultation required with the ECB, it is proposed that the Central Bank will be brought under the Freedom of Information Acts other than in respect of records that are subject to professional secrecy obligations, in particular under EU law and euro system requirements.

The public financial bodies, including the NTMA and NAMA, the NPRF and the NDFA, will all be brought within the jurisdiction of the Acts subject, in particular, to the maintenance of strict confidentiality of their engagement with their commercial counterparts, for example, in securing external private finance for the State. It is not proposed to bring the other banks under the legislation as they would not have policy or regulatory functions such as those held by the Central Bank. A question on that has been tabled for reply tomorrow as well.

The Department of Health, irrespective of Governments over the years, has been a Department that impacts on the lives of every household in the country at some stage or other. Clearly, when the Government led by Deputy Ó Fearghaíl's party put all the health boards together, put the superstructure of the HSE on top of that and expected it to work efficiently, it was never going to happen. To be honest with the Deputy, what used to apply when the Minister of the day would present his or her budget to the Cabinet and it would be approved, is that a service plan would be provided to implement that but one found afterwards that, because of demand or whatever, moneys were being moved around, not in any fraudulent fashion but where it was difficult to control what it was being spent on. The Minister, Deputy Reilly and the Ministers of State, Deputies Kathleen Lynch and Alex White, are now trying to change the system to one where universal health insurance will apply, where money will follow the patient and where one is able to do far more, far more effectively and with less than applied in the past. That is what is at stake here.

On what I did when I heard that this was out of line last year, I had a row about it and several fairly serious discussions. That is why the changes made by the Minister, Deputy Reilly, are moving to a point where there is far greater clarity about the programmes and the effectiveness of the voted budget for 2013 and a real emphasis on producing the legislation to give effect to the decisions made in the budget to ensure that will not happen again.

It is always difficult with the health portfolio, as Deputy Ó Fearghaíl is too well aware. It is a Department that must be seen to run very efficiently and effectively in the interests of the people. That is why I welcome, for example, the decision by the Minister, with the agreement of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, that 1,000 extra nursing jobs would be provided outside the employment framework at between €22,000 and €25,000 a year for young Irish-trained nurses who will get experience and an opportunity to work in Irish hospitals and gain their credentials at the equivalent starting rate as exists under the NHS. It is such decisions that impact the changed nature of the way we want to provide services. That is why, from the Minister's perspective, one is able to say to people that we want to keep them in their home and community for as long as possible, that they will then move to a facility as close as possible but, essentially, that medical attention is given based on medical need as distinct from what they have in their pocket. That is where, in the next few weeks, there will be the production of serious papers, in respect of both money following the patient and universal health insurance, which will be the basis for a real debate in the House, together with the publication of the Minister's decision in respect of the groupings for hospitals and the future for smaller local hospitals. This will impact for the betterment of the delivery of health services for the people.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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One of the Government's stated strategic objectives is to enhance relationships on this island. Looking at how the Government does its work in terms of the modalities the Taoiseach outlined in this strategic document, he will recall that on 19 December I asked him about the bill of rights for the North. The bill of rights, as he will recall, is one of the outstanding matters from the Good Friday Agreement. For the past two and a half years, the British Government has used the work of a commission which it established to deal with the entire British state as an excuse for not delivering on a bill of rights in the North. When that commission released its report in December, however, it accepted the argument of the importance of a bill of rights.

It stated: "We do not wish to interfere in that process in any way nor for any of the conclusions that we reach to be interpreted or used in such a way as to interfere in, or delay, the Northern Ireland Bill of Rights process." When I raised this with the Taoiseach in December - there is talk in his responses that every three months there is a report and so on - he indicated he would read the report, which he had not read at that point. He committed to follow up with the Executive in the North and with the British authorities about this report. Has he read the report since then? Has the Government taken up this issue with the British Government and the North's Executive? How does he intend to secure progress on this very important issue?

The Taoiseach may have heard that the DUP Minister, Ms Arlene Foster MLA, said this morning that the DUP may support my weekend call for a Border poll under the Good Friday Agreement. This, rhetorically at least, is one of the aims of all the main parties in this Dáil. The Good Friday Agreement creates the democratic and peaceful process by which the citizens of the island can decide whatever our preference is. Perhaps those who want the union can try to persuade and argue outlining their vision. Those of us who want the unity of the people and of the island can do the same thing. All of us need to work with our Unionist neighbours to try to bring this about - indeed there is a constitutional obligation on the Government to do so. Does the Taoiseach welcome, as I have, the remarks of the Minister and would he support that as a process?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I hope we can have a discussion about the report in respect of the bill of rights when I next have an opportunity to talk to the leaders in Northern Ireland. In regard to the Border poll, I have listened to the Deputy's comments and to those of the Minister, Ms Arlene Foster MLA. I think she might have a slightly different view from that of the Deputy. This is clearly a matter that is enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement, but it is a case of whether the British Government decides to have a Border poll. I do not believe now is the time to do it and that is not to be in any way not confident about what we have to do. It is very important that in the Twenty-six Counties we deal with our problems in a way that we can concentrate and prove that people working with Government, with assistance from our European colleagues, can actually right this ship, as it were, to a point where we can know with clarity that we are proceeding on a voyage of future prosperity and opportunity for our people, and clearly there are challenges ahead for our people here.

In respect of the Six Counties, Northern Ireland, I think what the Minister, Ms Foster MLA, said was that Sinn Féin should be careful of what it wishes for, because it might happen. Our view, obviously, is that a Border poll at this stage would be carried in a slightly different direction than the Deputy might wish.

Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Let us test it.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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That is the point. I do not believe now is the time to do it. I know the Deputy has been involved trying to assist in the recent difficulties over the flag controversy in Northern Ireland. It is time for the First Minister, Mr. Robinson MLA, and the Deputy First Minister, Mr. Martin McGuinness MLA, and everybody else including us here, to work in the interests of restoring stability and community peace in Northern Ireland. That is why I was very happy to propose to President Van Rompuy that the multi-annual financial framework for Europe include moneys for the PEACE programme. When I have the opportunity to raise that with our American colleagues, I will be happy to do that also. Clearly the Deputy knows better than most how sensitive this can be in vulnerable community areas. I would like to see Northern Ireland really begin to prosper - it has been doing that - but this sets it back in terms of reputation and retail capacity and all the rest of it. It is a matter for the British Government to agree whether to have a Border poll now. Clearly if that were to happen, depending on the result, we would have to consider what would happen here. I do not think now is the time to do it. I know it is an issue that is in the Good Friday Agreement, but we have much work to do both here and up North before people's mentality and views change about the future of the island.

There are now many connections regarding the development of the island economy. For example, we appointed personnel from Northern Ireland to serve on the permanent representation in Brussels in so far as Ireland's Presidency of the European Union is concerned. We have had discussions at the North-South Ministerial Council about reducing the rate of corporation tax in Northern Ireland, which is a matter for the Northern Ireland Executive and the British Government. Where we can, we help the First Minister and Deputy First Minister with their trip to China seeking potential investment in Northern Ireland and elsewhere. There is considerable activity there and now is not the time for a Border poll.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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I call Deputy Boyd Barrett to be followed by Deputy Higgins. I ask them to be brief because we are running out of time.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I return to the issue of jobs and growth, which is the top priority in the strategy statement. The Taoiseach has reiterated that it should be the Government's priority. When I ask him these questions I am almost lulled by his dulcet tones and fervent optimism into feeling like a spoilsport in raining on the party-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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We could do without hearing about the Deputy's feelings at the moment. Would he mind asking a question?

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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-----of optimism he is promoting when it comes to jobs.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Time, time, time.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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I almost feel guilty, but then I go outside and suddenly I am snapped back into reality because the talent he mentioned, which is out there on the streets and which this country is full of - we agree on that point - is being utterly wasted. I am as aware as the Taoiseach that this is the country-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Would the Deputy mind putting the question?

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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-----of great talent, great writers and authors. We have people with fantastic education, great ability and potential, but hundreds of thousands of those talents are being wasted and flooded out of the country.

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Thank you.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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The question I ask the Taoiseach is as follows. Against that background, is it good enough to say that the Government's employment policies will lead to, as its projections suggest, no increase in the net level of employment by the end of this year-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Thank you.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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-----and a reduction in unemployment of only 1 to 1.5 percentage points in the best-case scenario by 2015? That means that even in the best-case scenario-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Thank you, Deputy, we are short of time and I want to allow Deputy Higgins to contribute.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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-----the Government is presenting, we will have hundreds of thousands of people unemployed. Is that good enough to offer the talented people, who want to work and contribute to our society?

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Does the Taoiseach agree that a so-called Border poll would only hold a choice of hell or high water for the people of Northern Ireland - a choice of decamping from one austerity-blighted state with mass unemployment and poverty to another austerity-blighted state, south of the Border, with mass unemployment and poverty, equally?

Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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We are looking for a new Ireland.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Does he agree that a Border poll campaign would only serve to unleash a torrent of sectarian division, a platform for inflammatory sectarian politicians, who have nothing other than mayhem to contribute to the working class in Northern Ireland? Does he recognise that Nationalist and Unionist parties, as they have done on the union flag controversy, would simply use such a poll to divert attention from their failure to resolve any of the critical issues facing working-class people in Northern Ireland and distract from their implementation of atrocious austerity mandated by the British Government-----

Seán Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, Ceann Comhairle)
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Thank you.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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-----and that rather than a Border poll only a coming together of Protestant and Catholic working-class people seeing the disaster the crisis-ridden capitalism on this island means for them and the havoc it wreaks in their community and agreeing a common struggle for a new economy and society - a socialist society - that would be run in the interests of a majority with a future for all working class people and particularly for the youth in both communities, who are equally condemned to the crisis and the unemployment and poverty the present situation involves-----

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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As I said to Deputies Adams and Boyd Barrett, I do not believe that now is the time for a Border poll rather it is a time for relentless pursuit of the creation of an environment wherein jobs and investment can take place. In response to Deputy Boyd Barrett's question, this cannot be done unless a situation is created wherein there is confidence in our economy, including from abroad.

Two years ago, our reputation was in shreds, we had a dysfunctional banking system and a haemorrhaging out of the banks, a haemorrhaging of jobs, an incapacity to borrow money on the open market and 250,000 jobs were lost in the private sector. To rectify this, we had to take many difficult decisions resulting in billions being taken out of our economy and challenges for people. This is beginning to pay dividends in the sense of the investment confidence to which I referred becoming evident at long last. I hope that our negotiations on the two fronts at European level will pay dividends to enhance this and make our debt position more sustainable.

The vast majority of unemployed people to whom I have spoken want to be at work or to have an opportunity to go to work. This is the reason we are shifting the emphasis from what previously applied in the former Department of Social Welfare whereby people where statistics and received taxpayers' money to tide them over to Intreo, which involves community affairs, the Department of Social Protection and Health Service Executive working together interviewing people about their experiences and competencies, the opportunities which exist to allow them do what they wish to do and encouraging and motivating them to contribute to their country and local economy. It is a challenge for Government to be imaginative and creative in these opportunities. People involved in private enterprise are bursting at the seams in terms of their desire for us to get out of recession because they see so many opportunities opening up. I am heartened by the number of small businesses around the country, employing three, five, seven, ten or 20 people, who are thriving through use of the Internet, brand image and quality products.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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I do not know what country the Taoiseach is talking about. Perhaps he is speaking about Germany.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I am the first to admit that our unemployment level, at 14.9%, is too high. However, we cannot deal with this effectively until we get our house in order and there is confidence that this is a country in which people should invest.

Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance)
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What is the time scale?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Boyd Barrett referred to wasted talent. The people for whom I feel sorry are those who leave this island because they have no hope and do not know what to do. One issue being addressed during our Presidency is that of recognition of professional qualifications. Far from people having to resort to emigrate to the far end of Australia or Canada and so on, there are opportunities closer to home in the context of their being European citizens. That is an issue we need to look at.

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Nurses on 20% lower wages.

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I am not suggesting that they be required to emigrate. The 500 Irish people I met in Beijing, Shanghai and Singapore are there by choice because they see real opportunities there.

Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)
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Choice?

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The failure of politics is the people who leave because of a lack of hope. While we need to address this, we cannot do so until such time as we create confidence in the country, which will be proven by inward investment, which is now beginning to happen. I accept there is a long way to go but we are heading in the right direction.