Mark Dearey (Green Party)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I will reflect on some of what can be seen as almost congenital fault lines which existed in the economy that led to exaggerated expansion and subsequent falls in our economic fortunes. I will be very brief because there is no point in doing this in a recriminatory sense. There is a point in examining the issue if we can learn from it.

We have lost 137,000 jobs in the construction sector. It contributes enormously to the overall job loss figure in the economy and reflects an excessive reliance in our economy on construction right up to the bursting of the asset bubble. There was a policy failure as 24% of all economic activity was in the construction sector. That excessive reliance was inevitably going to cost us and after the bursting of the bubble, the cost has been exceedingly dear, which is highly regrettable. The problem was identifiable and has now come about. The question is how to turn around an unparalleled disaster for employment in this country to engage with those 137,000 people in an economy that will guarantee a working life through to retirement. It should not be based on an irrational belief that asset values would continue to increase at an almost exponential rate.

The answer to that question lies in helping people move to what is broadly called the green economy. The United Nations Environment Programme estimates that for every dollar or euro invested in green energy, the job creation impact is greater than in any other sector globally. The figures exist to prove that, although the industry on a global basis is still working at a relatively early stage.

We will get an employment bang for our buck if we invest in sustainable energy, especially in the wind sector, which is becoming increasingly competitive and will continue to do so as global oil reserves diminish and we see a subsequent rise in global prices. I attended a seminar recently that was organised by the Dunleer community development board in County Louth. The board invited people who think about the sustainable economy to speak to them as a village and a community with a strong rural hinterland, good land and farmers who have prospered over the years and invested in their farms. Many of these have had a good year this year as well. How can such people partake in the green economy and how can the 137,000 construction workers get into it? Such people attended the seminar.

These people may have been lured into construction on the promise that it would secure their futures but arrived as late entrants. As such, they were the first to exit and most badly burned by the kind of investments they made. Some of these people are really struggling. It is incredible to see resilience in people who have been duped in a sense by buying into what turned out to be a parlous dream. This is partly because they have no choice but they also believe in their own ability. They are seeking pathways to sustainable employment and the creation of their own businesses.

I was very struck by how sectors, particularly in the rural economy, are close to being viable without massive subsidy interventions. A curve was shown on the night by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland indicating that with a marginal enough increase in oil prices — I do not wish it but it will happen — afforestation of even reasonably good lands becomes a real economic benefit. For every six hectares planted, a job is created either through nursery work, the planting and management regime or the subsequent value added activity that can be engaged in on foot of producing the raw timber.

There are real prospects in forestry and it is heartening that for the first time the sector is being recognised in the programme for Government, with a commitment to plant 10,000 hectares per year. We will plant approximately 8,000 hectares this year and I fervently hope we will maintain that level of activity in future. It is through the production of biomass and wood that jobs can be created and we will begin to recover.

The question has been asked whether people can be part of the smart economy if they are not smart. Some people do not feel part of the process and there were examples at the meeting I attended. They can begin to see prospects for themselves in the 2020 food programme produced by Bord Bia recently. That is essentially a green vision for Ireland's horticultural and agricultural sector. It is about low inputs and producing food in a way that is less dependent on increasingly scarce resources.

Even in this dark hour — it is said that it is darkest before the dawn — there are opportunities if we begin to embrace the prospects and opportunities the green economy offers. I have only had time to identify two areas in energy and biomass and horticulture but these are real ways to begin growing jobs and get people off the dole. We can then increase the tax take and look to realise the daunting targets we must reach. The economy will back this up in future not just in the form of exports but for our indigenous people.