I propose to take Questions Nos. 177 to 179, inclusive, and 183 together.
The labour market continues to perform extremely well. In the period to the second quarter 2001, the latest period for which CSO data is available, the labour force grew by 36,300 to reach a level of 1.78 million people. This includes an additional 45,800 people at work and a further fall in unemployment to 65,400. The unemployment rate has declined to 3.7%.
While there have been a number of announcements regarding redundancies in recent months, these have not as yet translated into any significant increase in unemployment. It is too early to predict in concrete terms what impact the recent tragic events in the US will have on the global economy and in turn on employment. The ESRI, in its recently published medium term review, suggested that in the event of a sharp slowdown, unemployment could double in the next two years but thereafter the economy was in a position to return to strong growth and full employment. It advised, therefore, that current medium term strategies should remain in place.