Cowen says Irish economy has reached 'turning point'

Taoiseach Brian Cowen has said the economy has reached a 'turning point' and that the Government's priority now is to help those who have lost their jobs back into employment.

Speaking today at a Fianna Fáil meeting in Athlone, Co Westmeath, Mr Cowen said the Government wanted "to ensure that Ireland avoids a protracted period of jobless growth".

Mr Cowen said foreign direct investment will continue be encouraged and that Ireland's 12.5 per cent corporation tax rate "will not be increased".

The Taoiseach said Ireland will continue to be a "great place" for foreign direct investment and said the corporation tax rate "will remain at the heart of our strategy to attract ongoing foreign direct investment”.

He was critical of those who have opposed the Government's strategy on bailing out the banks, saying they "are closing their eyes to the most basic necessities of a market economy".

He said the country's banks had to play their part in assisting national recovery. "Our position is simple - if the banks are

not working for small business, then it is our responsibility as a government to make sure that they do," Mr Cowen said.

"The Irish people stood up and backed the banks of Ireland in their hour of greatest need. Now it is time for the banks to stand with the Irish people, to do their job responsibly, and to provide credit to viable Irish businesses that are the engine of job creation."

Outlining areas where as many as 260,000 jobs could be created over the coming years, Mr Cowen said the Government is "working to ensure that a return to economic growth will be accompanied by job creation".

Mr Cowen said the Government’s economic renewal plan was working to generate jobs.

He said Enterprise Ireland’s objective is to create 40,000 new jobs over the next five years, which "through the multiplier effect", "will lead to an additional 28,000 jobs" elsewhere in the economy.

"Many of these new jobs will come from the small business sector”, Mr Cowen added.

The Taoiseach said nearly €40 billion is being spend on infrastructure to generate jobs in construction projects "and to increase the productive capacity of the economy, enhancing competitiveness and supporting long-term jobs”.

Citing last March's report by the Innovation Taskforce which stated that some 110,000 jobs can be created through supporting innovative businesses, Mr Cowen said:

“At the heart of our jobs strategy is the need to increase rates of innovation across the economy, not only in the high-tech sectors but in all sectors. Positioning Ireland as a Global Innovation Hub will generate new jobs and new enterprises, and also help sustain existing jobs as firms move into higher value-added activities".

Mr Cowen cited green enterprise as "another key area" for job creation. He said the Green Enterprise Action Group "has published plans to create 80,000 new jobs over coming years" and added that implementation overseen by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Renewal "there has already been significant progress.”

The Taoiseach said the Government was treating unemployment “as a priority".

"We are not promising overnight solutions but I can assure you that we are, as a priority, tackling the issue by improving competitiveness, protecting existing jobs and improving the conditions for new jobs to be created".

"When hit with an international financial crisis of this magnitude, jobs cannot be created in a vacuum. Long term sustainable job creation can only come about by putting our public finances back in order, fixing the banking system and pricing ourselves back into the markets we serve", the Taoiseach said.

"Ireland is doing those things and we must persevere with this strategy for recovery on the hard road back to prosperity and an expanding economy again”, he concluded.