Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

The policy of the Government regarding the participation of members on State and semi-State bodies is clear. There is no need to ask the question. The record will show that Members on the other side of the House have voted on several Bills which have excluded local authority members from participation in the make-up of these boards. The Harbours (Amendment) Bill 2008, due to be debated in the House next week, proposes that local authority membership on port authorities be reduced from three to one. The debate will afford Members on the other side of the House to express their views on this issue. The Government will get the answer it needs only if Members on the other side support the local authority members who elected them to this House. That is when the chickens will come home to roost. Until then the Government will continue to treat local authority members with contempt.

I fully support the request for a debate on unemployment and competitiveness. It is easy to refer to an increase of 45,000 on the number of people who are unemployed. We must identify with the individuals behind these figures. I was recently approached by a couple who are both working with a company that is closing down. They have been married three or four years and have bought a new house. We must take an imaginative approach in devising strategic policies to help these people. We are haemorrhaging jobs and we must devise proper policies to address the issue. The mantra is to wait for the budget on the 14 October. Let us hope that the correct policies are announced then.