Tom Morrissey (Progressive Democrats)

The NCC's benchmarking exercise has raised many interesting issues. The council acknowledges the tremendous success of the Irish economy over recent years, much of which can be attributed to the success of policies taken by Government. For example, the benchmarking exercise ranked Ireland second after the US out of 16 countries in terms of GDP per capita above Switzerland and Denmark; first out of 15 countries in terms of real GDP growth over the five-year period 1998 to 2003, which represents over 41% in real terms; and the fourth lowest unemployment rate out of 15 countries in 2003. Senator Ryan wondered about a compassionate society. The exercise also ranked Ireland as having the fourth highest employment growth in 2003 out of 15 countries.

The council notes the economy is doing well at present, but in order to sustain our economic success into the medium term we must sustain commitment to promoting national competitiveness. The Government has a key role in ensuring that commitment is honoured.