Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 121: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps she has taken or proposes to take directly on indirectly to address the issue of unemployment generally and more specifically areas or regions that have been hit in the current economic climate; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [44997/09]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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Unemployment is increasing across the country due to the downturn in the economy and this has impacted on all regions. This situation is unwelcome and the Government is determined to provide those who are unemployed with the necessary support services and training to enable them get back into employment as soon as possible.

This is why I have doubled the provision of training and work experience places managed by FÁS to over 130,000 and I have increased the referral capacity of FÁS Employment Services from the Department of Social and Family Affairs to 147,00 persons in 2009. I have also introduced a number of labour market activation policies that will provide support to those who need it most.

In terms of the allocation of training places each of the 8 FÁS Regions develop appropriate plans regarding the range, mix and type of training courses appropriate to the needs of that region. In this process each region will identify their training needs based on regional profiles, which include: response to the live-register activity of the region; the demand for specific training courses from jobseekers living in the region; response to regional redundancy situations; the skills required by local enterprises to sustain businesses; and current or future (short - longer term) labour market needs of the region.

Regional variations in the type and level of training provided to meet the above will exist across regions. Budgets for training courses are allocated across regions based on these factors. The Government is taking specific measures to ensure that job retention and creation is optimised to its full potential. Enterprise Ireland has prepared a new recovery strategy to identify the actions that are being undertaken to help clients in 2009. This strategy refocuses Enterprise Ireland's efforts in facilitating entrepreneurship and the enterprise environment in national, local and rural communities, developing existing clients in all regions and thereby protecting existing jobs. Enterprise Ireland are also committed in driving the creation of innovation-based start-ups.

The Employment Subsidy Scheme has been introduced to support the maintenance of vulnerable jobs and prevent people from being made redundant in this challenging national and global economic environment. I have decided to have a Second broader Call for applications with extended eligibility criteria open to both exporting and non-exporting firms. The Second Call will be open to many companies that were not eligible to apply for the First Call. Enterprise Ireland will again manage the Scheme.