Feargal Quinn (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Ownership is a production factor. Entrepreneurs are a production factor. These people are indeed rich and one can argue that we want to encourage social cohesion but it is also problematic if entrepreneurs are driven out of the country because they are the source of job creation.

In terms of social protection, we must think of other innovative ways to get people back to work. I have spent some time looking at what Sweden has been doing. It introduced a credit for hiring household help. This innovation was designed to spur demand for low wage workers. We think of Sweden as a very liberal country, but it has now reformed its system so that union membership dues, in contrast, no longer qualify for tax relief. Thus, Sweden is encouraging lower skilled people to work and is not ashamed to introduce measures such as a credit for household help. This is something I had never considered.

In Belgium also one can claim a large part of the cost of household help. We should consider some of these steps. I believe local authorities in Denmark are responsible for ensuring the local availability of day care facilities, including child minding. Childminders are supervised and often co-ordinated by the local authorities. Back to Sweden, the combination of lower taxes and fewer benefits there is intended to encourage people to work. The Swedish Minister for Finance says the new system is encouraging more people to take jobs and is the key, not only to faster growth, but also to keeping inequality very low. The Minister for Finance there believes that in the long term, Sweden's reforms will raise the country's employment rate by 5%. We seem to forget about this here. We need to get people into any sort of employment.

Senator Mary Ann O'Brien made a point about something that is threatening jobs, namely, the issue of sick pay payments. She has made such a strong case that there is little need for me to touch on it. However, I believe a huge amount can be done in that area. If we turn a blind eye to the issue and allow what has been suggested to go ahead, we will create a huge gulf in job creation.

I have a personal interest in the Construction Contracts Bill and cannot believe it has got stuck somewhere along the line. The Bill was introduced two years ago and has gone through this House and has passed Second Stage in the other House. However, the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Hayes, is having great difficulty moving it on from wherever it is currently. This is a Bill that will help create jobs. Many jobs were lost when the State paid for big construction contracts, but where the contractor did not pay the subcontractors. I believe we can do a lot on that and would love to see this Minister move on this and help the Minister of State get it off the ground.