Government needs to wake up to job’s crisis – Seán Crowe

Government needs to wake up to job’s crisis – Seán Crowe

May 17, 2012

Dublin Sinn Féin South West TD Seán Crowe has said that only a Government led stimulus package in job creation will address the ultimately lead to growth and recovery.

Deputy Crowe said: “The Austerity Treaty would prevent the type of Government led investment which is needed to kick-start economic recovery in this State.

“The newly elected French President Francoise Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet to discuss the Treaty and the issue of austerity versus growth. This is the choice which faces the Government and they cannot have it both ways.

“Sinn Féin has put forward positive proposals on job creation in every year since the crisis began. In each of our budget submissions we have argued for the need to invest in jobs and job creation in the private sector; to remove the banking burden from taxpayers and to reduce the deficit through fair taxation and eliminating public spending waste.

“It is clear that the Fine Gael/Labour Government is not serious about job creation. They have talked about employment but they have refused to introduce any meaningful jobs investment programme since taking office and they have done little to help the domestic economy.

“The result is that there are 440,000 people signing on, with a further 70,000 forced to emigrate in the last year. Long term unemployment is endemic and on the basis of the Government’s own projections, by 2015, unemployment will still be at least 11.7%. Most commentators consider this a conservative estimate. This is not good enough.

“Sinn Féin is calling for a three year investment package in the region of €13 billion focusing on infrastructure and new enterprises. This money would be sourced from the discretionary portfolio of the National Pension Reserve Fund, matching funding from the European Investment Bank and an investment from the Private Pension sector. Such a fund would directly create in the region of 130,000 jobs over three years, or an average of 40,000 jobs per year.

“This level of investment could save potentially €800 million per annum in social welfare and bring in a massive increase in revenue receipts, directly and through the wider economy.  In addition a €600 million job retention fund could keep up to 96,000 people in their jobs for one year.

“This is the kind of money needed to kick-start the Irish economy and to create jobs. Similar proposals have been made by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions. They have proposed a €15 billion investment package. SIPTU have also proposed a major investment programme of €10 billion.

“Such an approach is simply not compatible with the harsh rules contained in the Austerity Treaty and its ratification will significantly tie the hands of this and future Governments to lead the kind of investment required to tackle the unemployment crisis."