Joe O'Toole (Independent)

The Minister of State is right; I could continue for some time yet, but I will take a break at some stage to hear a little of what is coming back to me.

We are making the inequality in our society even worse and I do not believe it will create an extra job or save any industry. I ask the Minister of State to come back and contradict me with hard evidence. I am not talking about a shop here or there; what industries does the Government believe will be resuscitated by reducing the national minimum wage? Where are the new jobs to be created by the reduction in the national minimum wage? What is the assessment of the loss to the economy by reducing the national minimum wage? What is the balance to be struck? There are the issues to which we need to give long and hard consideration. At a minimum, the Government's case on reducing the national minimum wage is not proved. Even if it were not ethically and morally questionable, even in pure financial and economic terms, it has not been shown or proved to me that any jobs will be saved or created as a result of this.