Paudie Coffey (Fine Gael)

We have learned today that the State must invest another €9 billion in the zombie bank, Anglo Irish Bank, simply to keep it afloat. We have also heard damning reports on the State-owned Dublin Docklands Development Authority which appears to have had an incestuous relationship with senior management of Anglo Irish Bank, which is hardly a coincidence. Three reports on planning, financial affairs and corporate governance issues in the Dublin Docklands Development Authority are in the hands of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. We understand they have huge implications and consequences in terms of exposure for the taxpayer. We must know about the role of the Government and ministerial decisions in the operation and oversight of the authority. There is a need for the Deputy Leader's party colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Gormley, to publish the reports on this very sorry affair as soon as possible. We understand they are already in the public domain. It is important that, as Members of the Oireachtas, we see and debate them accordingly. I, therefore, call on the Deputy Leader to arrange a debate on the authority and the involvement of Ministers in the decisions taken to increase borrowings at the authority which have left the State in a financial quagmire.

All of this is happening at a time when the unemployment figure has surpassed 436,000 on the live register, the highest ever recorded and double the EU average. I remind the House that more than 85,000 of these are under 25 years of age. There have been almost 100,000 redundancies in the past year in many factories in many sectors, including manufacturing, engineering, pharmaceutical and construction. Agencies such as FÁS, the VECs, third colleges and the enterprise boards will play a significant role in re-skilling and retraining the people concerned to help them find gainful employment again.

The European Union provides assistance through the European globalisation fund to an amount of €500 million per annum. I draw the attention of the House to something I have discovered in working with the Waterford Crystal workers, that is, there has been little or no communication between the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation and the State agencies responsible for the roll-out and operation of the fund in this country. There is confusion in respect of Dell, SR Technics and Waterford Crystal, as a result of which thousands of redundant workers are awaiting assistance urgently. Not only that, other companies are entitled to access the fund, but the Department has been asleep at the wheel and made no application on their behalf. I refer to Teva Pharmaceuticals, ABB, Honeywell and Bausch and Lomb in Waterford with combined job losses in excess of 1,000. No application has been made to the fund on their behalf by the Department, which is a disgrace. In the construction sector thousands of workers have been made redundant but no application has been made to the fund on their behalf. I, therefore, propose an amendment to the Order of Business that the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation come before the House to debate this issue and the respective roles of the Minister for and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Innovation and all relevant State agencies in assisting redundant workers to access the fund, which would help them greatly.