Mary White (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister, Deputy Bruton, to the Seanad for this debate. I relish the opportunity to lead the Fianna Fáil contribution to the debate on the Action Plan for Jobs. The action plan and the accompanying quarterly progress reports represent an excellent initiative on the part of this Government. The reports provide transparency with regard to multiple governmental actions, each of which influences job creation and entrepreneurship in its own way. The policy statement on entrepreneurship in Ireland, which was published recently, is a welcome addition. I am speaking on behalf of my party, and also as an entrepreneur as the co-founder of Lir Chocolates. I have been a nominee to the Seanad of the Irish Exporters Association since 2002. I take a keen interest in policies that encourage exports. As a supporter of the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises association, ISME, I follow closely how the State and the banks relate to the small and medium-sized enterprise sector and to the self-employed. Of course we welcome the decline in unemployment. I understood that the current rate was 11.1%, but I heard this morning in the Seanad-----