Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein)
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Earlier this year, a briefing paper was produced on unemployment blackspots in the State. The CSO defined an unemployment blackspot as an electoral division whose labour force exceeded 200 persons and where the unemployment rate exceeded 27%. The results from this paper tell a shocking story of political failure to address issues of social inequality in Limerick going back 20 years. It is the front-page story of the Limerick Leader this morning.

We know that for many years unemployment has been systemic in certain parts of Limerick but this report highlights how the situation has steadily worsened even as the country as a whole enjoyed a return to economic growth. Indeed, if we did not know better, we would think that this research was exclusively on Limerick as opposed to a State-wide report.

In 2002, Limerick city did not appear in the top ten worst unemployment blackspots in the State but by 2006 it accounted for four out of the top ten areas. It worsened to a shocking seven areas out of the top ten by 2011. This latest report shows that Limerick had eight out of the ten areas with the highest unemployment rates in the State in April 2016. Its important to put these areas on the record of the House: unemployment in John's A was 58%; Galvone B, 45%; Ballynanty, 43.6%; Abbey C, 42%; Prospect, 41%; Glentworth, 40%; St. Lawrence, 40%; and Kileely, 39%.

These figures are a damning indictment of the political establishment's disregard for people living on working-class estates in Limerick city. It is especially damning in respect of long-standing public representatives, some of whom are still in office and one of whom was a Minister for Finance. The figures show that Limerick is the most socially divided city in the State. This is their legacy. Successive Governments have known the issues of disadvantage in Limerick but this most recent research highlights that things have been getting worse and not better for whole sections of our community across the north and south side of Limerick city.

It is clear that unemployment blackspots are increasing in the city and have been for 20 years. Something is seriously wrong and this cannot continue. We need new policies in place to ensure intervention by the State to give people the future they and their children deserve in terms of education, job opportunities and careers. We need targeted investment in each of these eight areas to tackle disadvantage and rebuild hope in these communities. We need to roll out new programmes of training, apprenticeships that can lead to real jobs within anchor institutions or those companies providing services to those institutions.

We need to ensure there is balanced regional development in the State. This has not been happening and the regions are declining. Specific to Limerick, we need to introduce IDA Ireland to the north side of Limerick city. IDA Ireland has rightly been lauded for successfully bringing foreign investment to Limerick but it has never brought a project to the north side of the city where many of these areas are located. Community wealth building is a policy that encourages such community development, with a much greater focus on local jobs and services. Sinn Féin is pushing this across the whole of Ireland and it is a model that has proven successful in other countries.

These polices must be put in place to start job growth because Limerick deserves better. Limerick people deserve better. They deserve better job opportunities, to grow communities and to build back better after this pandemic. The report highlights a shocking level of disadvantage and inequality in Limerick city. I look forward to the response of the Minister of State.

Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein)
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The Minister of State has rightly mentioned many success stories around Limerick and we must acknowledge that. The IDA has done a good job around much of Limerick but it has not done anything for the north side of the city. It is a glaring failure in an otherwise good record of success across the midwest. The Minister of State mentioned a number of positive initiatives but I must say, with respect, we have heard this stuff before. More of the same policies are not going to change what is wrong in Limerick city, with respect to the chronic unemployment and disadvantage that have become entrenched in many parts of the city. I ask the Minister of State to go back to the Government with a message that policies must change and that specifically, we must embrace community wealth-building as a policy. That is where we align our anchor institutions - in Limerick that would be the University of Limerick, University Hospital Limerick and Limerick City and County Council - and ensure they do business differently to benefit local businesses, to encourage the development of co-operatives and to encourage a living wage through their procurement policies. This is the way to encourage our city for the better; more of the same simply will not work.