Willie Penrose (Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 145: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will make a statement on the recently published annual competitiveness report; the steps he intends to take to address the issues raised in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31613/05]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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The National Competitiveness Council's, NCC, annual competitiveness report 2005 was published on 7 September. This report benchmarks Ireland's competitiveness relative to our 15 main trading partners and competitors using a compendium of 170 indicators. The indicators contained in the report are published by a wide variety of international sources.

The NCC expects to publish its annual competitiveness challenge later in the autumn. That document, which will draw on the findings of the annual competitiveness report, will highlight the main issues facing the Irish economy and will identify policy options to address them.

The NCC provides a valuable input to the formation of Government policies through its work on competitiveness benchmarking as it highlights where the economy is strong in competitiveness terms but also warns us emerging or potential challenges. Upon publication of the competitiveness challenge the Government will give careful consideration to the policy options identified by the council.