Dominic Hannigan (Labour)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and thank all the Senators who contributed to this debate. I do not want to criticise the various political parties for their actions over recent years. We all know the state the country is in, know the gist of the national recovery plan and have our views on whether the growth rates contained in the plan are likely to be realised. One thing we can all do is to play our part in trying to create as many jobs as possible.

In that regard, I welcome the contributions from the various Senators who have come up with ideas as to how to generate jobs. Over recent months I have spoken to people in many businesses across my county of Meath and to people who would like to set up new businesses. I listened to the messages they would like to send to the House with regard to what we can do to make it easier to create local jobs. The key issue which arises repeatedly is the lack of access to the credit market. My colleagues have spoken about our ideas for a strategic investment bank and this would not be before time. It is something that should be created as soon as possible. We also need to look at bill payment mechanisms. Currently, some large companies wait for months before they pay their small subcontractors. We may need additional legislation in this area to ensure people pay their bills on time.

We need to take a look at social welfare with regard to sole traders and people who start their own businesses. Many of these people who go out of business find that they have no access to social welfare. This needs consideration. Senator Butler mentioned green economy jobs. We can generate additional jobs in this area. Ireland has some of the highest wind speeds in the world. Denmark has managed to generate more than 20,000 jobs in the wind generation sector. We should identify the problems that arise in creating jobs in this sector in Ireland. One issue that repeatedly arises is access to the grid and the gates process. We need to find out the constraints that inhibit producers from accessing the electricity network. There is further potential in other areas of green energy. For example, every euro we spend on the biomass industry generates 70 cent of local expenditure.

We need to follow the example of France and Germany by supporting our artisan food and craft industry. Officials in France see their role as facilitating production whereas our officials often see themselves as gatekeepers. We need to help rather than hinder new industries.

Tourism is one of our greatest assets. Senator Ryan spoke about the potential for job creation in that sector. I have heard great ideas from people in my own county. A Book of Kells heritage centre could become the key destination for visitors to the Boyne Valley and County Meath. The beautiful courthouse building in Kells, which is being refurbished at present, could become the nucleus for a heritage centre, thereby giving tourists an opportunity to learn about the Boyne Valley and the historic town of Kells. I will be requesting Fáilte Ireland to fund that project. Similar projects could be pursued in every town and village in Ireland.

We can continue to grow employment the tourism, agriculture and green energy industry. All we hear at present is bad news but having consulted many people from County Meath and elsewhere, I believe we have the talent and enthusiasm to recover and it would not take much to put the economy back into shape. My colleagues have outlined the way we should proceed. I thank Senators for their contributions and commend the motion to the House.