Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator. I hear what he is saying. I know Limerick well. My grandfather originated from Limerick. It is a fantastic city and a fantastic region.I heard what the Senator said about the north side of Limerick and I will convey that to the Minister of State, Deputy Troy. I was struck by what he said about particular black spots and unemployment in areas ranging from 58% to 39%. Those are quite stark figures and that is something we need to tackle. The Senator acknowledged IDA Ireland does considerable good work in the area and much good work is being done. The targeted investment the Senator referenced must be particularly ramped up for these regions and for the areas within the regions that are suffering more than anything else. Community outreach is integral to that and collaboration from a grassroots level up is needed to motivate people through the adoption of a multipronged approach to get people back into the work environment. We had 15% unemployment across the country during the recession but we managed to bring that down again. That is something we can do again in the Limerick region.