Jobs to top Ahern's agenda

EU Presidency: The Taoiseach has told international business leaders that Europe must take more decisive action to become competitive or continue to lag behind other economic areas.

In a special address to the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Mr Ahern said Ireland's EU Presidency offered an opportunity to bring a new impetus to the EU's economic agenda. "We are not trying to change the world in six months but there are a few issues we can deal with," he said.

Mr Ahern said that, with economic reform at the centre of its six-month agenda, the Irish Presidency would focus on how to boost growth and create more and better jobs.

"It means that at every level we must increase the ability of workers and enterprises to respond to change. We must make work more attractive and we must ensure more effective investment in human capital. I am working to ensure that the European Council gives a clear signal of Europe's intent to act on the employment agenda," he said.

The Taoiseach, who was praised by the leader of Europe's employers' organisation, Unice, for his commitment to making the EU more competitive, said the EU should not miss the next opportunity to reform.

"There are welcome signs of global economic recovery on the horizon. Europe must avail of the economic upturn to deepen the process of economic and social reform, both at EU and national levels.

"The gulf between the EU's ambition to be the most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world and the reality, is still very wide. We are still some way behind the United States and other global economies. We have to compete in a rapidly integrating world market that includes, for example, a rapidly growing Chinese economy," he said.

Earlier, the Taoiseach acknowledged that many Europeans did not understand the EU's economic reform programme, known as the Lisbon Agenda but he added that the issues at the heart of the programme affected almost everyone.

"The bottom line effect is: how many people tonight are able to go out on a Saturday night because they have a job and they're doing well? How can they afford to pay their mortgages? How can they afford to educate their children? That is the connect we need to put into the Lisbon strategy rather than talking about broad economic terms," he said.