Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)

One can analyse oneself into paralysis. There is an element of risk taking involved in governing, when we must choose which of a menu of options to implement. An initiative such as JobBridge, which puts young people into internships, is a win-win situation. I do not know what analysis one could apply, but I would be happy to do it on the back of an envelope to show that it is a good thing. Politically as well as economically, it makes sense to take people who have no experience and give them some. The typical catch-22 situation is that one is looking for a job with no experience, but one cannot get a job without experience. This initiative gives people nine months' experience. It puts them in the shop window. In many cases, with the companies I know that have come forward to participate in the scheme, they will take the interns on if it works out. There has been sufficient cost-benefit analysis to show that these are sound judgments. That is what the Government is for. We employ analysts, but then we must make decisions. I stand over those decisions.

The issue of the pension levy has been dealt with often by the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, in the House. There is no tax that people like. It was a former ESRI man who said something to me that I will always remember: "To love and be wise, as to tax and be loved, is not given to many." It is very true. There is no tax one could introduce that would make people jump up and down and say: "More of that, please." However, we need tax to fund initiatives to kick-start enterprise.

I am aware of the issue of horticulture in Kinsealy, but it is not part of my remit and I am not in a position to-----