Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail)

I agree with much of what he stated on the importance of education in a modern knowledge-based society. The economic base we now have was built upon second-level education becoming freely available in 1966. I am the Government spokesperson on lifelong learning on which we will table a motion next week. It is important that we focus on the critical issue of education and we will have an interesting debate next week.

Many people of my father's generation had to emigrate to find employment. Today we have employment opportunities on this island. I graduated from college in 1999 and many or all of those in my class in secondary school and at university have employment opportunities their fathers and forefathers did not have.

Ireland continues to win international investment from global corporations because it is seen as a business location where the workforce, as well as being highly qualified has a unique capacity to improve, innovate and initiate new ideas, processes and ways of working to make business more dynamic, efficient and profitable. The IDA invests extensively in promoting new inward investment with a particular focus on business sectors closely matched with the emerging needs of the economy and which can operate competitively in global markets from an Irish base. Key areas of focus for the IDA are advanced manufacturing projects in sectors such as IT, life sciences including pharmaceuticals and biopharmaceuticals, medical technologies and engineering.

I am glad to see the national development plan involves all of the State bodies in a co-ordinated approach and is well-funded in the medium-term to the tune of €52 billion over the next six years. Despite growing competition from other locations, which was referred to by other Senators, Ireland continues to win a disproportionate share of inward investment to which the Minister of State referred. Independent reviews confirm that Ireland's market share of investment into Europe continues to grow despite competition and the decrease in recent years in the overall pool of investment available worldwide.

Ireland's inward investment projects showed a strong increase of more than 10% according to the latest Ernst & Young European Investment Monitor. The number of investment projects increased to 74 in 2006. Investment continues to be dominated by the US and the UK as the US increased its number of investments in Ireland from 41 to 42 in 2006 and those of the UK increased from six to 16. According to a study by a major Irish bank the European index shows Ireland is in second place with regard to inward investment companies or locations in Europe.

I come from a region in Donegal which has suffered major job losses during recent years predominantly due to losing the manufacturing base of employment we had to low-cost economies. We also lost out as a knock-on effect to the conflict in the north of Ireland which lasted for too many years. The Donegal region has a network of IDA developed quality business parks with the necessary telecommunications, utilities, infrastructure, buildings and site options to cater for the needs of multinational clients.

Overseas companies based in Donegal include UnitedHealth, which is a US health care claims processing company, Pramerica Systems Ireland, Medisize Donegal Healthcare, Boston Scientific, Zeus Industrial Products , SITA PTS which is a Swiss software development company and Abbott Laboratories a US medical devices company. A range of other companies are employed in the Gaeltacht area of County Donegal under Údarás na Gaeltachta.

The Donegal region has a highly-skilled workforce with a good work ethic and competitive labour costs. The new interdepartmental group on Donegal was established at the request of the Government. The interdepartmental group, comprising key players from each Department and the Donegal county manager, was asked to focus on the progress made on infrastructural requirements to make Donegal a more attractive location for enterprise location particularly as it makes the transition from the traditional to more modern and higher-value-added industries.

I call on the Minister of State to use his good office to ensure every Department signed up to the interdepartmental group will fast-track the required infrastructural projects. This will help to ensure that a report should be sought from each Department on the up to date position on the roll-out of critical infrastructural projects including water and sewerage projects announced recently for 2008, 2009 and 2010, the road from Dublin linking Derry and Letterkenny and the roll-out of broadband in the county.

Donegal County Council in association with Derry City Council established the Diaspora project which promotes bringing people back to Donegal to create employment. It is important that IDA Ireland, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and other agencies work with this project to attract home those who established business elsewhere and who have the knowledge, skills and abilities to come home. We will have a céad míle fáilte for them if they wish to do so. In Donegal Town, IDA Ireland has commissioned architects to design a 1,000 sq. m office building in Lurganbuoy. A substantial number of new jobs will be created through the Ballyshannon IDA project.

At a national level it is important IDA Ireland works with other agencies including Údarás na Gaeltachta, of which I am a member, to attract inward investment to the most geographically dispersed parts of the country, namely, the Gaeltacht areas. There is also a Gaeltacht area in the Minister of State's county.

I wish to make a number of proposals. Projects on infrastructural requirements should be fast tracked. I wish the new IDA Ireland chief executive, Mr. Barry O'Leary, well. He must deliver on implementing Government regional policy in terms of rolling out jobs to the regions and the west of Ireland. IDA Ireland must move quickly to increase site visits to the west and north-west of Ireland, including Donegal. We need site visits for people to realise the potential and opportunity available in regions. If they do not go to regions to discover what facilities are available it is difficult to bring new companies and employers to those areas. This is an important debate and I know the Minister of State will relay what is raised to his Department.