Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the comments of Senators Harte, Clune and Reilly and wish the Minister of State well. He is always a welcome visitor to this Chamber and in itself, the circulation of the service level agreement was a nice innovation. We are always looking for enterprise and the 3,000 jobs per month that have been generated over the past 12 months are most welcome and this represents a good change. They are in exporting industries, are not dependent on fiscal stimulus or boosts within the economy and that is the way forward. While progress is slow, we must keep at it.

I also welcome the boost to tourism announced yesterday both in respect of the abolition of the travel tax and the retention of the 9% VAT rate. It is to be hoped that many jobs will come on stream as a result and that the airlines will respond.

As a brief point and to assist the Minister of State, the question is whether it is possible to design a banking system other than one based on property speculation. Did the banks lose the ability to know anything about small or medium-sized enterprises? I think they did and simply became property speculators.

Senator Quinn and I made some progress on the upward-only rents renewal Bill when it passed one of its Stages here. The objective was for the property sector, pension funds and insurance companies to bear some of the brunt thus not leave it to small industries, small shops and so on who rent the premises. We will seek that consensus again.

What the Minister has in mind is exactly right, we must build enterprise in society that is not based on an artificial stimulus in the construction sector or seek massive recruitment campaigns for the public sector, like in the past, that eventually bankrupted the country. The Minister is going in the right direction and I am sure that he has the support of all Senators in his endeavours. I thank him for bringing the Bill to the Seanad and wish him well in his endeavours.