The mismatch between growth rates and job creation was discussed at the meeting which I and other Ministers had with the Central Review Committee on 28 February 1992. I informed the committee of the consideration the Government were giving to a new appropriate structure with political input to develop new ideas and proposals to deal with unemployment. Such a structure was welcomed by the committee and it has since been set up as the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Employment.
I also informed the committee that the National Economic and Social Council are undertaking an EC-supported study on the connection between growth and employment which will analyse Ireland's performance compared to other EC-OECD economies. Phase I, which is underway, will examine Ireland's recent performance with regard to growth, employment and unemployment in comparison with the other EC member states and selected other OECD countries. This descriptive account will be linked to an examination of theoretical approaches to the growth-employment-unemployment relationship.
Phase II will draw on the overview of performance to analyse (i) the factors influencing the employment intensity of Irish growth, and (ii) the policy and practice of those countries where comparative analysis indicates better employment performance.
The Government have already numerous strategies in place to generate more employment, for example, tax reform, the employment and training subsidy schemes, the 12 area-based partnerships, the Culliton-based development of indigenous industry, the task force on employment and the task force on tourism. The conclusions of the NESC study will be taken into account fully by the Government as will the recommendations of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Employment.
I attach special importance to the work being done by the State companies linkage group established by the task force on employment to use the resources of the major State commercial companies to promote linkages between those companies, the multinational businesses operating in Ireland, and specialist indigenous Irish sub-supply companies. The approach has recently been extended by developing an integrated approach to linkiages through a deepening of the national linkage programme in which the lead role is taken by the IDA. The first industrial sector in which this new integrated approach to linkages is being developed is the Irish building products industry. The second industrial sector for which an integrated linkages approach is being developed by the State companies linkage group is the software and related services industry. The group are also examining in detail a report entitled "Forging Links With Foreign Industry" which was recently submitted to me by the Small Firms Association. Another aspect of the development of linkages was the launch by Deputy O'Rourke, Minister of State for Trade and Marketing, on Wednesday, 22 April 1992, of a new campaign involving Bord Tráchtála and the Industrial Development Board of Northern Ireland which is aimed at increasing the level of supply to industry by small companies in Ireland, north and south.