Madam, – I am the chairman of a medium-sized enterprise involved to a large extent in the construction industry, but with clients from all sectors of the Irish economy. In our last financial year we had around €6 million turnover, this year it looks like we will have around half that, largely based on being busier in the earlier part of the year. In other words, things are getting worse.
In July, things suddenly got better in terms of orders and inquiries. Why? The summer school works programme! thankfully we got a good bit of work from it. There was a lot of pressure to complete work before the schools reopened, but that’s a problem we love to live with.
Now we are in September and things are looking gloomier than before.
There are few new works, local authorities have no money and Joe public is holding on to his. As a result, we and many like us will lose money and lay off people, with additional cost to the exchequer and personal suffering.
All the Government attention is focused on Nama and presumably the Budget, which I don’t believe will do a thing to preserve jobs in the short term, and as we know, in the long term we are all dead.
So I checked how much our personal mini-boom in July cost. Google yielded a press release from Batt O’Keeffe stating €80 million provided works in 1,180 schools. Thank you, Minister you kept a good bit of the remaining architectural and building industry going for four to six weeks. In return the State got much-needed work done and it got Vat, PAYE, and PRSI rather than paying dole. I think that is called win, win.
Why are we not developing a programme of labour-intensive highly focused local works schemes to employ small and large builders, carpenters, bricklayers, electricians and maybe even a fencing contractor or two. Twelve- months duplication of the summer works programme would cost less than €1 billion, less than 4 per cent of the Department of Social welfare budget.
How I wish I believed these sort of ideas were buzzing around our politicians’ and civil servants’ brains, but unfortunately I don’t think the small issues are getting any attention. Will someone please come up with a few ideas to stop the haemorrhage of jobs in this economy. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – Far be it from me to criticise the Tánaiste’s largesse but has anyone thought through the new Employment Subsidy Scheme (Home News, August 7th)? Any effort to retain jobs in the current economic crisis should be welcomed, but why does it have to done in such a half-hearted and inequitable manner. Why is it restricted to export companies? Surely the risk to Irish manufacturing jobs from cheaper imported goods is just as serious and the potential loss of jobs just as damaging to our economy?
The loss of manufacturing jobs to foreign imports has exactly the same negative effect on the economy as the loss of export jobs. The cash flows out of our economy in the same way and when the economy eventually recovers these manufacturing companies will have disappeared, probably forever. It is clear that all manufacturing jobs need some level of support and the Tánaiste and her department should look at extending this scheme to all manufacturing companies whether they export 30 per cent or not.
This scheme is window-dressing to create some positive spin for the Tánaiste, following disastrous unemployment figures. It isn’t fooling Irish business and it won’t fool those unfortunate employees who suffer redundancy due to lack of support from their Government.
There is still time to extend the Employment Subsidy Scheme in a meaningful way and I would urge the Tánaiste and the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment to act now. – Yours, etc,