“FG clearly ignorant of Government’s jobs strategy”- Minister Billy Kelleher

Billy Kelleher, Fianna Fáil T.D. and Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, has today criticised Fine Gael finance spokesman Richard Bruton for his ignorance of the Government’s jobs strategy.

Minister Kelleher said: “It is quite bizarre that Fine Gael continues to insist that the Government lacks a jobs strategy when this is clearly not the case. The Government has introduced a wide range of measures aimed at maintaining employment and creating new opportunities. It would seem that Richard Bruton and his party colleagues have simply chosen to ignore these measures.”

“Moreover, the Government recognises that addressing Ireland’s cost competitiveness is of fundamental importance to recovering long- term sustainable growth. Though difficult, it is determined to drive down Ireland’s cost-base by tackling public pay and other barriers to competition such as energy costs.”

Minister Kelleher concluded: “In order to bring Fine Gael up to speed, some of the key measures of the Government’s strategy have been outlined below:

•In December 2008, the Government launched its plan for the Smart Economy which will promote Ireland as a leading knowledge-based economy by harnessing the best elements of the enterprise economy and the ‘ideas’ economy. Innovation in the energy sector is central to this framework policy.

•In July the Government announced plans to create 30,000 jobs in the next decade by positioning Ireland at the forefront of the digital and clean technology revolution

•The €250 million Employment Subsidy Scheme has to date given direct support to nearly 7, 500 jobs which has led to a commitment to retain over 35,000 jobs. It is envisaged that this fund will directly support another 20,000 jobs.

•Targeting firms that are vulnerable but viable, the €100 million Enterprise Stabilisation Fund has already provided support for 131 projects.

•The Government has maintained a very substantial capital programme.

•The €100million National Insulation Programme for Economic Recovery will assist and support the creation of 7,000 jobs. This scheme has been extremely successful with 33,000 households already having applied for grants worth €38 million.

•This year alone, the Government will spend over €600 million on the school building programme across the country - the highest spend on school buildings in the history of the State. It is expected that this will create 3,000 jobs.

•April’s Budget introduced over 23,000 additional education, training and work experience places for the unemployed at an estimated full-year cost of €128m.

•The Government has also been successful in securing the commitment of significant funding under the EU’s European Globalisation Fund for measures to train and up-skill former Dell workers and others affected closure of the plant.

•Several measures have also been taken to increase the flow of credit. Chief among them is the NAMA legislation.