23 August 2016
By Bryan Smyth
bryan@TheCork.ie
Senator Burke
Fine Gael Senator for Cork North Central, Colm Burke has said that employment has increased in all regions of the country in the past year, which will be of benefit to people in Cork and will encourage young people to come home. Senator Burke was speaking after the CSO released the Quarterly National Household Survey (QNHS) figures for Quarter 2 of 2016, showing the 15th quarter of consecutive employment growth.
“The CSO’s QNHS released today (Tuesday) shows that over two million people are now at work in this country, the highest it has been since 2008. Crucially for people here in Cork, the figures show that employment has increased across all regions of Ireland in the last twelve months.
“Another real positive for families across the country is the CSO data showing the number of Irish people returning home has increased by 74% in the last year. Families here in Cork know all too well the consequences of the economic recession, with their children having to leave to find work. It is great to see these young people returning to a recovering economy, new employment opportunities and the possibility of living fulfilling lives here at home where they belong.
“Fine Gael is continuing to deliver on its pledge to prioritise job creation and reduce unemployment. The Action Plan for Jobs, first launched in February 2012 during the last Government, oversaw the creation of 179,000 new jobs. Unemployment is now down to 8.4%, firmly below the European average. More importantly, long term unemployment has dropped below 100,000 for the first time since the crisis began.
“Even with this job creation success, we cannot be complacent. Only a strong economy supporting people at work can pay for the services and investment needed to create a fair society.
“We must continue to focus on job creation and to ensure that all regions of the country experience the benefits of the economic recovery. We are on target to achieve the Government’s goal of the creation of a further 200,000 new jobs by 2020. Already we have seen 36,000 jobs created in the first half of this year. I also welcome the Government’s target that 135,000 of these jobs will be created outside Dublin, and I will be working hard to highlight all that Cork has to offer to potential investors.
“The upcoming Budget will be another step in this country’s recovery, and we will introduce new measures to mitigate the impact of Brexit, focus on job creation and invest in new services to improve people’s lives.
“I welcome the fact that there are now over two million people working in Ireland. Each new job created is another family looking forward to a brighter future; a further sign of returning confidence and growth; and will provide more resources to fix the many challenges we face as a society.”
