Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

Every speaker so far has been in favour of this recommendation. It is a reasonable recommendation in that it sets out the cost of forgoing tax, the benefits in terms of job creation and the tax expenditure provided for in the Bill. One of the first schemes in this country was the one mentioned by Senator Leyden, which was introduced by Deputy Enda Kenny, the seaside resort scheme. I remember that scheme well and know exactly what happened. It was one of the first schemes introduced and there were no proper plans in place for dealing with it. Some schemes should have a longer lead in time and proper plans should be put in place. Nobody seemed to know exactly what was to be achieved with the holiday resort scheme. We should have learned something from that. With regard to the scheme for hotels, we should have set a target as to how many extra hotel beds were needed. The same should have happened with regard to the car park schemes. We should have considered how many extra car parks we needed and where they were needed. The same should have happened with nursing homes. If it is the case that we need these schemes, this recommendation is central to any plans that should be put in place. Therefore, I fully support the recommendation put forward by Senator Alex White.