Fiona O'Malley (Independent)

I thank Senator Donohoe. Whoever it was, the point is we know the message and it came loud and clear. We all need to work together. We have a responsibility in times such as these and we need to pull together to bring a turnaround in our economy. We do not need petty political points, such as calling our economy a basket case. I hope the Senator will desist from doing that in the future.

The Minister of State made a good request, not only on behalf of the Government. He made a lovely reference to the fact this is not a job for him; it is the future of his children. That is the way we all should look at it. Senator Healy Eames has children. She is looking for a bright future for them too. Calling the economy of her country a basket case will not provide a good future for them. I will get off the point because maybe she is sorry now she did and maybe she will prove that by not doing it again, and I hope others do not either.

I welcome this strategy. Being such a small country, we have done terribly well. Organisations like IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland over the years and with successive Ministers have done very well for the country. When one has a good clear strategy and targets - an element I like about this strategy is there are clear targets set - one does well. It is not so much that we know what we are doing but we are very clear about where we want to be in a while.

I was interested in what the Minister of State said about the Asian strategy, which is now coming to its natural end. The target was €8 billion and we exceeded that by €2 billion. That is terrific. Would we not be delighted if we were doing the like of that again in other sectors? It just shows that a target-based approach can hone the minds, get things done and harness all the energy and creativity within the country.

We will exceed the target. I wish this Government and the next Government well - I do not care who will be in it or who will be out of it. An issue like this is good for our country and we need to work together out in the world selling Ireland enthusiastically.

I am glad Senator Donohoe has returned because I want to compliment him on his speech. I loved his positivity. I loved that where he saw some matters that were overlooked, he did not even call them shortcomings. I hope the Minister of State, who appeared to be interested in what he was saying, will take them on board because he made very valid points.

I liked the remark he made about how one needs to get our message over quickly and easily in three sentences - cheap to do business in, easy to get to etc. The bottom line is that it all distils into "Ireland is good for business". Everybody here, not only Government, although it is the Minister of State's direct responsibility, and every facet of Government needs to ensure that Ireland is good for business. It is as simple as that, and where there are problems, they need to be ironed out. That is why I believe in this strategy where sectors are coming together and working together.

I am particularly interested in the visa alignment issue. That is something we need to push. There is no way, particularly at this time in what we are facing, we need any kind of a barrier to getting business done in Ireland. Yesterday a Senator spoke of the red tape that can be associated with small and medium sized enterprises. We really need to look at that. We must make doing business easy because it is good for us.

I believe in this strategy and I wish the Minister of State well in getting it done, but I also am glad to see tourism in it. There is much more we could do around tourism and I am glad to see a greater focus on it in terms of an industry. I was recently in Tajikistan with Voluntary Services Overseas where we were tasked with trying to establish a tourism industry for that country. It is a beautiful country. It was like Connemara mixed with the Alps. It really was stunning. However, the people there have no experience in terms of the private sector in particular and how to set about developing a tourism industry. The people there do not like to be criticised. They have an ancient tradition. I drew on the example of the history of this country and told the people there that when we were poorer we were dependent on agriculture but we have now moved on and developed our tourism industry, as has Greece. Tourism has become one of our major industries and has transformed people's lives. Tourism has the capacity to do that. It is an industry that can easily reach into every community, particularly rural communities. I refer to Connemara in this context, with which I am more familiar, where land is poor and it is hard to make a living from farming. People there need the diversification of the tourism industry.

I am glad the tourism industry is included in this strategy and its development is taken seriously as a dynamic force that has the capacity to transform Irish society.

I very much welcome the strategy. The section about investing in the economy is also important. The Minister of State and the speakers from all parties spoke about the importance of our corporation tax rate. We all need to sing clearly from the hymn sheet in that respect and to make people realise it is not in jeopardy. I concur with that view. Our corporate tax rate has allowed the country to be transformed and it should remain in place.