andMr. Wyse asked the Minister for Industry and Energy if, in view of the Taoiseach's reported statement regarding redundancy in the Dunlop dispute, he will indicate the overall Government plan he proposes to alleviate the present disastrous unemployment situation in the Cork area and to prevent further job losses there.

I am seriously concerned at the level of unemployment in Cork and the recent factory closures ——

I am asking if we have the support of other nations or not.

——and redundancies in the city. Since 1981 the Industrial Development Authority have approved almost 900 projects ——

My question has not been answered.

——for Cork city and county which plan to provide about 10,500 jobs at full production.

Deputy Byrne will please resume his seat.

Could I raise the subject matter of my question on the Adjournment?

The Chair will communicate with the Deputy. Would the Minister please repeat the answer, as I fear the Deputies could not hear.

I am seriously concerned ——

We are all seriously concerned.

I am seriously concerned at the level of unemployment in Cork and the recent factory closures and redundancies in the city. Since 1981 the Industrial Development Authority have approved almost 900 projects for Cork city and county which plan to provide about 10,500 jobs at full production.

The IDA have succeeded in recent years in attracting a significant number of major industries to the Cork area. Many of these companies are still recruiting and a large number of jobs have still to come on stream in these projects. They include North Star Computers, Compucorp and CPT Ltd. These companies already employ over 240 people and plan eventually to employ over 600 people. Three other electronics companies, Western Digital, Cado Systems and Perkin Elmer, recently opened their new factory premises in Cork where they will continue to expand. These companies now employ over 150 people and plan to provide jobs for over 660 people when full production is reached.

Firstly, could the Minister indicate to the House ——

I am sorry, Deputy. There is more information which I omitted to give.

I hope it is better than the information which the Minister has given.

Earlier this year the IDA launched a major new initiative for the promotion of the small industries sector in Cork city and the east Cork area. As part of a pilot programme, the IDA have decentralised their process of providing assistance to small firms. Eight small industry specialists have been assigned to work exclusively with small companies and an IDA small industries board have been established with full grant-giving powers. This represents a major commitment by the IDA to the future growth of the small industries sector in Cork.

The IDA have a strategic site of almost 900 acres at Ringaskiddy which they are promoting for industries requiring special facilities. In addition, the IDA have almost 280 acres of land available in the Cork city area at various locations for industrial projects. There is also 170,000 sq. ft. of factory space either available or under construction in the area which is being promoted for suitable new industries. As part of their ongoing commitment to Cork, the IDA is also providing a new craft centre at the Cork butter exchange in Shandon. Construction work is now well advanced on the 17 unit centre, and it is expected to be completed in the near future. A 30,000 sq. ft. enterprise centre is also planned for the city.

The Minister could have spared us the additional information. That is all old news which has been there for a long time. First of all, would the Minister indicate how many of the 10,500 jobs which he mentioned have already been filled and secondly, when will the full potential of 10,500 be achieved — in other words, in how many years? Is the Minister aware that the growth in unemployment in Cork city from end September 1981 to end September 1983 has risen from 6,531 to 11,328—more than an 80 per cent growth and those figures do not include the recent Dunlop losses? Would he not, as a matter of top priority, give special attention to Cork and by special attention I mean, particularly, attention to the major labour-intensive industries which are at present experiencing difficulty? Would he not regard it as an important aspect of his administration at present to look immediately at the Cork scene regarding such industries, to prevent further job losses and then to tackle seriously, and not in the manner which he suggests, the job creation line?

As regards the first part of the Deputy's question, as he will appreciate, this covers over 900 projects. I do not have available information regarding the exact number of the jobs which have materialised. However, this is a reasonable question and I shall obtain the information for the Deputy. As far as the other aspects of the question are concerned, I would not regard the number of initiatives which were announced as being in any sense old news. They may have been announced before but they are very important, in particular the designation of Cork as the area where a pilot small industry programme is being launched ——

They are welcome but not enough.

——with an independent board for the Cork area working within the IDA ambit. This is a major initiative, in particular in the number of highly skilled staff who have been allocated to find the potential of small industries in Cork, the individuals in Cork who have the capacity to set up businesses. One thing which is quite clear, as the Deputy will agree from his own experience, is that increasingly one finds among the people who, we regret, are unemployed those of tremendous talent who could set up industries or small businesses of their own. In view of the undoubtedly very serious redundancy situation in Cork it is entirely appropriate that the Government should have decided to initiate this intensive small industry programme with an independent board in Cork, where there are undoubtedly a particularly large number of people amongst the unemployed with the capacity to set up businesses of their own.

I want to know what the Coalition Government intend to do about the serious situation in Cork. Everybody is expressing concern. The people of Cork and all of us are concerned. We want action and want to know where all the promises made with regard to Cork at the last election have gone. Everything which the Minister mentioned today we already knew about — the craft centre and small enterprises. We were fully aware of these and the Government are not responsible for any of those.

Hear, hear.

The Minister should be honest.

A question, please, Deputy.

The Minister should tell us what plans the Coalition Government have for Cork. Their local representatives told the people last November about these. He should be honest and tell the people of Cork if he has a plan to deal with Cork which has the highest level of unemployment in the country. Either the Minister has a plan or he has not. What the Minister said here today does not meet the situation.

Hear, hear.

That is the question. The Minister should tell us what he is going to do about it.

The Deputies opposite seem to have forgotten that this is a mixed economy. The Government do not control the economy.

That is an easy way out.

The Minister did not say that when he was on the Opposition benches.

The position is that the Government set in place, in an economy such as ours, initiatives such as those which I have outlined, which create the conditions wherein people can set up their own businesses. Fundamentally, jobs will be created here only if we can get the cost structure correct, if we can get inflation under control and reduce the very heavy costs which are imposed on industry by certain charges such as energy. It is only if we can create the conditions in which ——

I hope that they are listening in their rooms.

——industry can be competitive that we can create jobs. I do not subscribe to the view — and some of the more thoughtful Members on the opposite side of the House would not subscribe to it either — that any Government can simply create jobs, full stop. Governments can create the conditions by the prudent management of their own affairs and by taking steps to reduce the excessive costs in the economy ——

Would the Minister like me to quote what he said last year?

——wherein directly competitive independent enterprise can establish employment. It is my intention that that should be the philosophy that we would adopt in dealing with the employment problems in Cork and, indeed, elsewhere. If we were to adopt any other philosophy all we would do would be drown our people in a sea of taxation which they cannot afford to pay.

Hear, hear.

I call on Deputy Lyons and then Deputy Wyse.

Where does the Minister get his orders?

I have been entirely consistent in this matter, as the Deputy knows.

Could the Minister tell us what plans he has? Does he know what they are?

Deputy Andrews knows that he cannot speak unless he is standing and he cannot stand unless he is permitted to do so.

Catch 22.