David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)

There is an unemployment crisis. The latest figures from the Central Statistics Office compound matters. Unemployment has increased from 14.2% to 14.4%, while the number of people working has decreased by 46,000, or some 2.5%, since this time last year. The long-term unemployment rate has risen from 6.5% to 8.4%, which means that, of everyone unemployed, more than 50% have been out of work for 12 months or longer. Against this background, the Government has cut back on the training and resource grants made available to individuals through community employment schemes.