Lorraine Higgins (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister of State, Deputy John Perry, for taking this matter which is the very serious situation in which Portumna, County Galway, finds itself as a consequence of a number of different factors. As the Minister of State will know, rural Ireland, County Galway and, in particular, Portumna have been hit very hard during this recession with the closure of various businesses and other facilities cherished by the local community.

In recent times, Portumna has had to contend with AIB leaving the town, the health centre being closed due to rat infestation and its one and only hotel burning down, with the loss of 60 jobs. Quite clearly, this has had a detrimental spin-off locally in that many small businesses have closed as a result of the loss of the hotel, in particular. Many of these businesses were dependent on the hotel for ancillary business relating to weddings, concerts, events and conferences.

Many Government economic policies aimed at enterprise and employment do not have enough rural focus. Rural employment and enterprise need to be further up on the policy agenda in the Department. It is clear we need to bring together many of the key stakeholders in Galway east, in particular, with a view to creating jobs and promoting economic development in the area. Any jobs which can be created in Galway East are welcome in light of the high levels of unemployment it is experiencing currently.

We must manage and address the unemployment crisis in the county. Currently, the rate of unemployment in County Galway stands at more than 22,000, with 1,457 people unemployed in Gort, 2,396 in Loughrea and 3,296 in Tuam. I am sure the Minister of State will agree that this is unacceptable and it is quite dangerous to have this high level of unemployment in small rural towns.

The county and Portumna, in particular, need a coherent long-term strategy which will align all the relevant stakeholders and agencies which will address the needs of the area and the region, in general. There is no point creating a talking shop in the county for the sake of it, although I am not suggesting the Minister of State would do so. Any task force which may be suggested must contemplate the needs of the area and the people of the area must take advantage of the area's key strengths. Those strengths are tourism, the arts, culture, agribusiness, food production, technology, engineering and the green economy sector. The crucial ingredients are the enterprise agencies which must play a leading role and need to have teeth in addressing this problem. We must join up national policy with local and regional policy and ensure those with responsibility for delivering economic development and job creation specifically deliver for the county in real terms.

As part of a task force, if one is created, targeted assistance should be allocated for small businesses, in particular, and job activation measures. With this method of economic development, we could then provide a new vision for rural Ireland which would be most welcome in these recessionary times in Ireland. I look forward to the Minister of State's reply on the matter.