John O'Mahony (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I congratulated the Leas-Chathaoirleach this morning when he was not in the Chair and now that he is installed, I do so again. I wish him well. I also welcome the Minister, Deputy Mitchell O'Connor, to the Chamber and congratulate her on her elevation to the Ministry. She has good west of Ireland roots and the issue of spreading regional jobs is top of her agenda, which I welcome.

One thing the previous Government got right was job creation. As the Minister stated, what must be done now is to spread those jobs. Senator Conway-Walsh mentioned that effectively, the reduction in unemployment is because everyone has emigrated. However, it is a fact that 155,000 extra people are working. As many of them would have been obliged to emigrate had those jobs not been created, I greatly welcome that creation, as well as the statistics on the reduction in long-term and youth unemployment, which also are priorities.

Another issue that has arisen recently is the JobBridge scheme. We are in a different place at present than was the case in 2011 and at the time, the JobBridge scheme served its purpose. Many people secured full-time employment as a result of being part of that scheme but we are now in a different space. I welcome that it is to be phased out because it is not needed now as much as it was then.

The key issue the Minister addressed regarding regional growth and the spread of regional jobs is absolutely crucial. This can be done in a number of ways and as the Minister mentioned, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the local employment offices, LEOs, are in place. I wish to be constructive but people, businesses and potential employers are falling through the cracks because LEOs operate mostly in mentoring and providing many services in a one-stop shop, which is an excellent idea. I have been involved with a number of small businesses that had the potential to employ more than ten people. However, as they were not exporting, Enterprise Ireland was not applicable to them and, similarly, foreign direct investment was not involved. The key to small businesses, the self-employed and all of this is to somehow put in place structures to support the five, ten or 15 jobs in indigenous Irish companies. The incentives are not in place for them and one is accused that were the jobs coming in from abroad, there would be bells and whistles. I ask the Minister to give consideration to this issue.

Some agencies already have been set up and I will mention the Western Development Commission in the context of the west and the north west. Its remit covers the five Connacht counties of Mayo, Galway, Leitrim, Roscommon and Sligo, as well as counties Donegal and Clare. The commission has done excellent work in providing jobs and through the Look West campaigns because there are many advantages to relocating to the west that are not available in urban areas. However, its budget is very small and in a possible model for the rest of rural Ireland, this commission could provide the incentives to that sector to which I refer that is left out at present. I urge the Minister to consider this area.

The broadband issue was mentioned earlier today and a survey came out this morning which suggested that 20% of small businesses were not online. I imagine this is not by choice in many cases; it is simply that they do not have broadband. While the date of 2022 has been mentioned, that is the date by which every house and business in the country will be connected. A great deal of work is under way in the roll-out of broadband at present. It is important that this process be speeded up and I am aware the Minister's colleague, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, is anxious to do this. However, when people hear the date 2022, they ask whether no one will have broadband in rural areas until then, whereas many people will have it.

Competitiveness is another area the Minister addressed in her contribution. Another success of the previous Government over the past five years concerned the tourism and hospitality sector and the 9% VAT rate but at present we are in danger of losing that edge of competitiveness again to increasing costs. This issue must be monitored but there are huge opportunities and I welcome the Minister's enthusiasm to continue that because while I am aware of other issues and services that must be upgraded, as well as restoration and so on, one must not lose sight of full employment. It is achievable in our present circumstances and I wish the Minister well in the task. I look forward to working together with her.