Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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338. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the extent of long-term unemployment here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16016/19]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Government policy to reduce unemployment is twofold.  The policies set out in the Action Plan for Jobs have created an environment in which business can succeed and has led to the creation of almost 400,000 jobs in Ireland  since the economic low point of 2012.  Secondly, through the  Pathways To Work strategy, my Department ensures that as many new jobs as possible are filled by people taken from the live register, particularly the long-term unemployed.

To date, these policies have been effective in reducing long-term unemployment.  For example, most recent data from the Labour Force Survey shows that the rate of long-term unemployment in Ireland has fallen from a peak of 9.5% in 2012 to 2.1% by the fourth  quarter of 2018.  Ireland has therefore already brought the long term unemployment rate below 2.5%,  a target set out in Pathways to Work 2016-2020.  This downward trend is welcome and reflects the impact of government policy to create more jobs and reduce unemployment.

Activation policy continues to focus on support measures for the long-term unemployed.  The Pathways to Work 2016-2020 strategy prioritises long-term unemployed people, most notably through the roll-out of JobPath to engage more systematically with this group; targeted wage subsidies under JobsPlus; and through reserved places for long-term unemployed jobseekers on employment and training programmes. 

The following table shows the most recent end of month statistics on the number of people availing of a range of activation programmes targeted primarily at the long-term unemployed.  Statistics for February 2019 are compared with those for February 2018.  Demand for places has fallen in line with a reduction in overall unemployment levels.

Activation Programmes (February 2018 and February 2019)

Over the coming years, we must make sure that our citizens are equipped with the skills to take up jobs of the future and avail of the opportunities arising from a modern economy.  Future Jobs Ireland 2019 has been launched by Government replacing the Action Plan for Jobs to deliver the required policy reforms to build a resilient workforce and innovative and competitive economy in a changing world of work.  

The policies being pursued by Government to create jobs and reduce unemployment have been effective and they will support further reductions in long-term unemployment and add to the substantial improvements in the labour market that have been seen over the last few years.