Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)
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Question 139: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her views on the need for job creation initiatives in Tallaght, which is the third largest population centre here; the actions being taken in the matter; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30589/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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The purpose of the strategies and policies being pursued by the Industrial Development agencies in Tallaght is to support enterprise development and provide employment opportunities in the area. The agencies work closely with each other and with local interests thereby using an integrated approach in order to increase the flow of potential investors and promote job creation in Tallaght and south Co. Dublin. A special conference took place on 10 July last. This involved all the key players. A Strategic Plan is now being prepared for the area to address the problems arising from the current economic situation.

The area has a number of attractions including a Third Level Institute and excellent infrastructural facilities at Citywest and Grangecastle. The development of the Grangecastle Business Park and the City West Business Park ensures that the area remains an attractive location for investment. Planning Permission has been approved for an Advance Integrated Circuit Manufacturing and Research facility at Grangecastle — this is the largest planning application to date in the State. This will be an invaluable tool for the future marketing of Grangecastle as a potential source of high quality and large-scale employment for the overall area.

Only last year, Microsoft Corporation selected Grangecastle as the location for its new European data centre involving a $500 million investment and 75 jobs. This reflects very well on our standing internationally as a global knowledge based economy. It also demonstrates our commitment to growing next generation business in south west Dublin and it shows the suitability of the area for world-class investments. Furthermore, Wyeth Biopharma has established the world's largest biopharma campus facility at Grangecastle and it is investing in dedicated research and development facilities. In June this year, Business Objects announced that it is to invest €29 million in establishing a research and development centre in Citywest. This significant new development will create a research and development team of 100 people over a four-year period.

I am satisfied that the strategies and policies being pursued by the State agencies in the area will continue to be successful in terms of investment and job creation.

Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 140: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her Department's estimates for job creation in each of the years 2008, 2009 and 2010; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30976/08]

Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 150: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of jobs she expects to be created during 2008 in regard to manufacturing and other sectors; the way these compare to figures each year going back to 2002; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [30917/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 140 and 150 together.

Forecasting employment figures is a difficult business and subject to a variety of unforeseen, often extraneous, variables influencing estimates of that nature. However, I still expect employment growth — being the excess of jobs created over jobs lost — to continue in 2008 and beyond, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years. The latest available employment data from CSO indicates that at Quarter 2 2008 there were almost 7,000 additional people in employment compared with the corresponding period in 2007. This is a testament to the resilience of our economy at a time of great uncertainty in global economic conditions, the continued strength of the euro and the dramatic downturn in the construction sector.

The Irish economy is undergoing a certain amount of adjustment and while the rate of employment growth is expected to slow it must be viewed in the context of historically unprecedented numbers of people in work. Since 1997, over half a million new jobs have been created in Ireland and the number in employment exceeds 2.1 million. In the period 2002-2007 the Enterprise Development Agencies created over 156,000 new full time jobs across all sectors — note the table below.

The recently launched "Report of the High Level Group on Manufacturing" contains 26 recommendations directed at key areas of innovation and productivity leading to transformational change, reskilling and management development for the innovative firm, increasing awareness and take up of existing supports. The implementation of the recommendations set out in this report will help to ensure that manufacturing will remain an integral component of our economy providing high value sustainable employment.

In tandem with our focus on adding value to the manufacturing sector, over the last two decades we have developed a very significant Services Sector which now employs two out of every three Irish workers. We are one of the world's leading service exporting countries and currently ranked the 10th highest exporter of services in the world. Earlier this month, I launched the report of the Services Strategy Group, "Catching the Wave: A Services Strategy for Ireland". The report sets out new policy proposals on how we can ensure the continued development and growth of Ireland's services sector. I believe that the implementation of these recommendations will enable Irish service companies to exploit new and exciting opportunities, such as eLearning, business and financial services, professional and consultancy services and others which will lead to significant employment opportunities for our workforce.

Competition for foreign direct investment (FDI) is relentless but Ireland continues to punch above its weight when it comes to attracting overseas investment. The pipeline of new business for which IDA Ireland is competing is strong, as evidenced by a number of high profile recent announcements. Already this year 28 new IDA investments have been announced with the potential to create 2,100 jobs over the coming years.

Looking to the future, neither the Government nor my Department are complacent regarding the varied challenges facing the country's economy. One of our main tasks is to ensure that Ireland remains an attractive place to do business and to support the development of economic competencies higher up the value chain. In that regard, we continue to work to maintain and enhance our framework competitive conditions, and promote new areas of competitive advantage by developing our R&D, base, investing in critical physical and communications infrastructures, and promoting tertiary education and lifelong learning.

We will continue to pursue policies to promote lifelong learning and up-skilling to improve labour market flexibility and, where necessary, ensure that appropriate training supports are provided for workers in sectors that are no longer competitive should they need to find alternative employment. Our priority remains the creation of high quality, sustainable employment, driven by companies with higher profitability, that are more technologically advanced and prove a better fit with the competitive characteristics of our economy.