At the outset I would like to sympathise with our colleagues in Westminster and with the people of London who have experienced yet another horrific attack by Islamic extremists. It is almost a year to the day since we had another attack, in Brussels, where 32 people lost their lives. On behalf of the Fianna Fáil Party, my party leader and my colleagues I would like to express our condolences to the families of the four people who lost their lives yesterday and to wish all the other people who were injured as part of that incident a speedy recovery.

The issue I wish to raise with the Tánaiste regards job creation. She will be well aware of the Succeed in Ireland initiative, a concept which grew out of the recent Global Irish Economic Forum. It is an idea and plan for job creation which was sponsored by the Government, managed by IDA Ireland and its running was contracted to an organisation called ConnectIreland. It is fair to say, by any measure, this initiative can be considered an outstanding success when one considers that, around the globe, there are now in excess of 80,000 members of the Irish diaspora connected to this programme in more than 147 countries. We have seen 81 companies locate in this country as a result of the initiative creating more than 2,000 jobs, with a yield to the Exchequer in excess of €300 million over the life of the programme and an estimated yield to our GDP of €1.8 billion.

In addition, it is very important that the Tánaiste knows, appreciates and understands that ConnectIreland is a not-for-profit company. It gets paid for job creation on a no-foal, no-fee basis. Every job it creates costs €4,000 whereas an equivalent job created by IDA Ireland costs in the region of €11,000, so the value for money can be seen. Significantly, it has gone a long way towards addressing the urban-rural issue we have, which has arisen because the Government and IDA Ireland have not been pushing enough jobs into rural Ireland with the result that there has been a concentration of jobs coming into the greater Dublin area.

On Tuesday, 21 March, the Joint Committee on Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation met with ConnectIreland and officials from the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation. It was a very unsatisfactory meeting because IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland failed to show. It is fair to say that there was cross-party support and a unanimous view that the work of ConnectIreland has been very successful. It has been proven to bring jobs into Ireland and into rural Ireland in particular. Now we are at a point where on 26 March, which is this Sunday, the contract is due to expire. The contact was extended by a year to allow for a review. That review has not gotten under way. We have had complete inertia from the Government and from the Department in regard to establishing it.

There has been a lot of momentum built up, there have been many leads generated, there have been many contacts generated and there are many potential jobs in the pipeline as a result of the Succeed in Ireland initiative and the work of ConnectIreland. It is coming to a shuddering halt on Sunday next. We are asking the Government to see common sense. Will the Minister step in and extend the contract? There is precedent because the contract was previously extended for a year. She should extend it for the period and duration of the review, which is about to get under way and for which we do not have the terms of reference. Can we have some common sense from Government and extend this contract?

I join with the Deputy in his opening comments as this is the first opportunity we have had in the Dáil to respond to the dreadful events in central London and outside Parliament in Westminster yesterday. I know that every Member of this House will join with me in expressing our outrage at this cowardly and evil act against innocent and defenceless people. We, like all right-thinking people, utterly condemn and reject such awful actions. Our thoughts and sympathies are, of course, with the families and friends of those who have lost their lives, among them PC Keith Palmer. He gave his life on duty in Westminster yesterday. We also think of the many men, women and children who have been injured and we hope for their speedy recovery.

I can confirm that there is an Irish citizen among the injured. I am advised that the person's injuries are not considered life-threatening and that the Irish Embassy in London and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade will offer all assistance to that person and to their family. I have conveyed my sympathy and offered our full support to the Home Secretary, Amber Rudd, MP. I spoke with the British ambassador this morning to express our sense of solidarity and our shock at these awful events. The ties that bind us across the Irish Sea are very close and strong. We feel, very keenly, that same sense of shock and horror that our colleagues, families and friends in Britain feel.

This is being treated as a terrorist attack and it has the hallmarks, as the Deputy said, of other attacks in Brussels and Paris. Whatever the motivation, there can quite clearly never be any justification for this type of inhumanity. I have been briefed by the Garda authorities and I spoke with the Commissioner this morning. An Garda Síochána is in constant contact with its UK counterparts, directly and through its liaison person there. Ireland cannot consider itself immune from the threat posed by international terrorism and extremism. The expert advice is that while an attack is possible here, it is unlikely. All possible steps are being taken by An Garda Síochána, supported by Defence Forces where necessary, to deal with any threat to this country. They will continue to work very closely with UK and international colleagues to make sure that we remain safe. There are a small number of people here whose activities are a cause for concern in terms of supporting terrorism. The authorities will continue to monitor them very closely. Today, however, is really about expressing our sympathy to all who have been affected by this appalling outrage in London.

On the points the Deputy raised about ConnectIreland and the Succeed in Ireland initiative, there was a detailed discussion on that in the Dáil yesterday. The Minister, Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor, made the situation in that regard very clear. It was borne out of the Global Irish Economic Forum with the aim of, rightly, involving our global diaspora. The context that should be put behind this is the fact that job creation has been so successful in this country. A strong policy has brought us to a point where unemployment has reduced from 15% to 6%.

On the Deputy's point on extending the contract, the Minister, Deputy Mary Mitchell O'Connor, made it clear yesterday that it is not legally permissible, due to public procurement law, to extend the contract. It has already been extended by one year and if the programme is to continue, IDA Ireland would need to put it out to tender. The board considered the future of the programme at its meeting in November and made the decision not to re-tender at this time. That does not mean that a definitive decision has been taken in respect of the initiative's long-term future.

It is very important that the Tánaiste appreciates that we will lose a lot of momentum and initiative which has been built up if the contract comes to an end on 26 March. That will be very regrettable because many potential jobs are in the pipeline. The Taoiseach said yesterday that litigation was pending and the matter was sub judice, but that is not the case. We have to appreciate that ConnectIreland is asking for the contract to be extended for the duration of the review, and it will be happy to take its chances when the contract is advertised for re-tendering. Allowing all of the good work to fall does not make sense to me and my party.

On the legal advice quoted by the Tánaiste, ConnectIreland has received legal advice from Arthur Cox. It is one of the largest legal advisers in the country and the Government and State rely on its advice. Arthur Cox has stated:

We cannot agree that there should be any public procurement concern in extending the contract and, in particular, there is most certainly in our view no legal impediment that would prevent an extension of the contract to allow ConnectIreland to generate new leaks and approvals for companies to establish in Ireland depending the departmental review of the initiative and the resulting decision on whether or not to extend the contract ... It is both legally permissible and entirely appropriate in the circumstances and we cannot identify any legal impediment while the IDA are refusing to do so.

Can the Government not see common sense and allow the initiative to continue while the review gets under way, bearing in mind that it is not yet under way? The Department is dragging its heels in a very bad fashion, in terms of getting this up and running. We do not have the terms of reference for the review; rather, we just have drift and inertia. We will lose momentum. Common sense should prevail.

No Government has been as committed to job creation as this one. The Deputy can see the fruits of that motivation and work in the numbers of jobs that have been created, which is spreading across the country and different sectors. We will do everything possible to ensure that continues. It has been a driving force behind the work of this and the previous Governments. It is incredibly important for the people of this country, because they want an opportunity to work.

The Minister will answer questions on this matter during Priority Questions later today. She has made it very clear that legal issues are involved and there is no choice but to go out to public procurement at this stage. She has also said she will conduct a review of the overall situation, which is important. She wants to examine the initiative, including its successful elements, and develop knowledge of what has worked and how it could be improved. She is currently setting the guidelines for that review.

There is a legal dispute between ConnectIreland and IDA Ireland, which is regrettable. The Minister has outlined a way forward. The programme has to go out to tender at this point.