Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 9 Feb 2012

Vol. 755 No. 1

Topical Issue Debate

Diplomatic Representation

Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl

I thank the Ceann Comhairle's office for facilitating me today. There was some confusion on this issue yesterday. I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, who will reply and I commend her on doing a superb job in her brief. She is clearly one of the most outstandingly hard working Ministers of State, but she will forgive me for saying that I am a little disappointed there is no Minister from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade here to address this issue.

On 3 November last, the Tánaiste announced his decision to close the embassies in Iran, East Timor and the Vatican. The amount to be saved by the closure of the Embassy in the Vatican is €455,000. Fianna Fáil has been clear from the outset in its opposition to this closure, citing our important and historical links with the Vatican, its position as an important listening post for international affairs and the fact that it is the centre of the Catholic religious faith. The Vatican Embassy represents one of Ireland's oldest diplomatic ties, with a diplomatic representation to the Holy See having been established in 1929 when the Vatican City state as it currently exists was founded. The Vatican Embassy is being closed at a time when other notable countries such as Russia, the United Kingdom and Australia are building up their diplomatic links with the Holy See.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade denied that the decision to close the embassy was a consequence of recent strained diplomatic relations. He stated, "The key consideration was obviously where we could make savings. I was anxious to retain resident missions in countries where there is a clear economic or trade interest." The foreign policy being pursued by the Government, therefore, appears to be solely founded on the basis of economic advantage rather than the broader diplomatic goals founded on shared values. There is a certain irony in that because yesterday there was an interesting debate in the foreign affairs committee about Ireland's proposal to seek election to the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Catholicism remains the majority religion in Ireland and despite the scandals that have beset it, the values espoused by the church and the policies it pursues have a direct impact on the State. The Tánaiste said all of this and more as recently as last July when he outlined the reason for the continuation of our embassy. He said the main purpose of our embassy to the Holy See was twofold. The first was "to maintain a permanent point of contact with the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, which continues to be the stated religious denomination of a substantial majority of Irish citizens and whose actions and policies have a direct impact and influence on Irish society." The second was "to maintain ongoing relations with a significant global political entity which has diplomatic relations with 179 states." He pointed out that the Holy See has one of the largest diplomatic corps in the world, "making the Vatican an important listening post and crossroads on a range of global social, political and international issues of interest to Ireland, including human rights, development, disarmament and conflict resolution."

It now appears the Fine Gael Members on the other side of the House finally realise the error of their ways. There appears to be a diversity of opinion within the Government, if media reports are to be believed. It is reported that at a recent Fine Gael Parliamentary Party meeting the Taoiseach reassured his backbenchers that the decision to close the Vatican Embassy would be reviewed. The Taoiseach went so far as to point out his close personal relations with the Catholic Church. During the heated meeting, according to media reports, the comments were endorsed by the Minister of State, Deputy Lucinda Creighton, among others. It has been reported that 30 members of the parliamentary party spoke in favour of the motion put down by Deputy Tony McLoughlin calling for the decision to be reviewed. Furthermore, I have also read that Deputy Colm Keaveney of the Labour Party, who attended the Stand Up lobby meeting in Buswells Hotel, told people at that meeting that we could afford the embassy.

It appeared that consensus had finally been reached and a review would be put in place to ensure that the re-opening of the embassy would be put back on the agenda. However, according to last weekend's Sunday Independent somebody forgot to tell the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade about the deliberations of the Fine Gael Party. He issued an unequivocal denial that there would be any change in the policy, stating that it was a Government decision and no decision would be reversed. Clearly, there is a breakdown of communications on this important issue. It is important for the country that there is cohesion between the Government parties as they deal with the manifest crisis that faces us.

Our party is strongly committed to the re-opening of the embassy. We believe the members of the Fine Gael Party who spoke forcefully about this at their parliamentary party meeting were reflecting the genuine views of a great number of Irish people. We call on the Tánaiste and the Fine Gael backbenchers, who had the courage of their convictions to stand up to be counted on this issue, to move now to redress the wrong that was done in closing this embassy and to re-open it.

Minister of State at the Department of Health (Deputy Kathleen Lynch)

I apologise that I am not the Tánaiste, in more ways than one. My personal experience of the Embassy in the Vatican was very positive. It was extraordinarily efficient and the staff were very courteous. They did their best to fulfil any request that was made. That should be put on the record.

I apologise that the script of my reply is not yet available. It will be provided to the Deputy.

The decision of the Government to close the Embassy of Ireland to the Holy See, as well as Ireland's Embassy in Tehran and our mission in East Timor, was taken following a review of overseas missions carried out by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade which gave particular attention to the economic return from bilateral missions. While the review identified the negative repercussions of closing any overseas mission it was not possible to avoid some cutbacks in our mission network, given the pressing need to reduce Government expenditure across the board.

It is important to make clear that we have not cut off diplomatic relations with the Holy See. We have simply decided that in the present circumstances our ambassador will operate on a non-residential basis. This decision to change our representation to the Holy See to non-resident status was driven by economic factors derived from our need to cut public expenditure and to focus the modest resources of our diplomatic service on economic recovery.

The total cost saving in a full year is estimated to be, as the Deputy has already stated, €845,000, of which €400,000 will come from the closure of the resident Embassy to the Holy See and €445,000 from savings on rental arising from the transfer of the Embassy to Italy to the State-owned Villa Spada. The wind-down of the resident Embassy to the Holy See and the transfer of the embassy have been completed.

In addition to the immediate financial saving, the nature of the responsibilities of the Embassy to the Holy See, particularly the fact that it is not involved in consular work or trade promotion, makes it more suitable than most embassies to be covered by non-resident accreditation. No one pretends this is an ideal arrangement but it is the most cost effective in the current budgetary situation.

Notwithstanding the differences that arose between successive Irish Governments and the Holy See in recent years, the decision to close the embassy was not taken in response to these differences. If the Government had wanted to make such a statement it would have done so far more clearly and at the time.

The Government's decision to nominate the Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Mr. David Cooney, as our non-resident ambassador means he will be ideally placed to inform the Government of any potential issues with the Vatican, thereby helping to head off difficulties in the future. The Holy See has agreed Mr. Cooney's nomination and it is expected that he will present his credentials to Pope Benedict in May. Mr. Cooney has travelled to Rome twice since his nomination for meetings with Vatican officials and will represent the State at the Consistory of Cardinals on Saturday 18 February. On his previous visit he attended the ordination of the incoming Nuncio, Archbishop Charles Brown, by Pope Benedict and conveyed to Archbishop Brown the best wishes of the President, Government and people of Ireland. The Government looks forward to working closely with Archbishop Brown, who arrived in Ireland last week, in his roles as Apostolic Nuncio and Dean of the Diplomatic Corps. I understand he is to present his credentials to President Higgins on 16 February.

The Government will continue to review our diplomatic network, including, as the financial situation improves, the possibility of reopening a resident Embassy to the Holy See on a more modest and cost effective basis.

I hope this answer satisfies the Deputy.

Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl

The Minister of State would be surprised if I were satisfied.

Deputy Kathleen Lynch

I would not.

Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl

However, I thank her for her response. I applaud her welcome of the appointment of Archbishop Brown and acknowledge the value of the appointment of someone of the calibre of Mr. David Cooney, albeit as non-resident ambassador.

That said, the Minister of State has not addressed the essence of my concern at the lack of cohesion in Government on this matter. The Taoiseach made it clear that this is something that should be reviewed. Implicit in what he said was that there would be an early and imminent review. That position was directly contradicted by the Tánaiste last weekend.

An allied issue is the possible visit of the Pope to Ireland to correspond with the Eucharistic Congress planned for later this year, 80 years from when it was last convened here. The congress will be of enormous significance to people of the Catholic faith. It will also be of major economic benefit. I cannot understand why the Taoiseach, or the Tánaiste, cannot issue an unambiguous invitation to the Pope to come to Ireland. We were delighted to welcome President Obama, Queen Elizabeth and the Dalai Lama, but the Taoiseach has side-stepped every question put to him as to whether he would extend a clear and unambiguous invitation to the Pope. He said the Pope would be welcome. We know he would, but why would the Taoiseach not invite him. Is he captured by the comments he made in the aftermath of the publication of the Cloyne report? Is he captured by those remarks, or why will he not issue a direct invitation?

Deputy Kathleen Lynch

As a Deputy who has more prolonged experience of coalition government, Deputy Ó Fearghaíl understands that when there are two parties in government Ministers do not always tic tac with one another when decisions are made in their Departments. I do not know what went on in the Fine Gael Party. I have enough to do to keep track of what goes on in the Labour Party. I merely read political commentary in the newspaper, and that commentary is not always correct.

The Taoiseach has made it clear that if the Pope were to indicate that he wanted to visit Ireland not alone would he be made most welcome but would be given all the respect and courtesy a man of his position would require. When Pope John Paul ll visited Ireland I do not know if he came on foot of an invitation from the Government. He may have been invited by the Cardinal and the Irish bishops. I do not know the protocol of these matters. If the Pope wished to visit Ireland he would be made most welcome and would be treated with all the deference he deserves.

I hope this answers the Deputy's question.

Pension Funds

Deputy Mary Mitchell O’Connor

My purpose in raising this matter is to argue the need to allow a certain cohort of people to unlock part of their pension funds. This would allow for a more humane and flexible system, reflecting the reality of life for many people who are under financial duress.

I draw the Minister of State's attention to three core areas. They are additional voluntary contributions, AVCs, private pension schemes and Section 19 of the Finance Act 2011. It is important that widespread early draw-down of defined benefit and defined contribution schemes be avoided. However, there are, currently significant funds in additional voluntary contributions and other personal pension schemes that are suitable for early draw-down. According to IBEC, it has been estimated that funds in additional voluntary schemes amount to roughly €4 billion. Many of the people who paid into such schemes were in a very privileged position during the boom and, wisely, chose to save some of their bonus payments and additional income. Now, many of these people have high personal debt and are struggling to meet financial commitments.

In January 2011, more than 40,000 borrowers were in arrears of three months or more, and another estimated 40,000 home owners were at risk of arrears. A report published in 2011 cites the significant effects on people's physical and mental health of stress, worry and inability to plan for, or control, their future. By allowing access to such funds the Government would provide an essential lifeline to many families.

I draw attention to the substantial wealth stock in personal pension schemes. IBEC estimates money in these funds to be in the region of €15 billion. Many of the people who contributed to them over the past decade were self-employed small business owners. Many are in negative equity or in serious financial trouble. These groups should be allowed a once-off draw-down of a limited amount from accrued funds to be accessed now and to remove the link to retirement.

I draw the Minister of State's attention to section 19 of the Finance Act.

It essentially forces individuals with an average pension fund of €200,000 to €250,000 either to purchase an annuity, contrary to the whole concept of ARFs, or lock the majority of the fund away until they reach the ripe old age of 75 years. Basically, it increased the guaranteed income requirement from one times the State old age pension to 1.5 times the pension, that is, €12,000 to €18,000 per annum and increased the amount of the pension to be locked away from €63,500 to €119,800. Therefore, on retirement with a fund of €200,000, 25% will be taken tax free. Of the €150,000 that remains, €120,000 will be locked away for a further ten years, with no access to the pensioner, who will somehow survive on a fund of €30,000.

I ask the Minister of State to consider the drawdown of the AVC contributions, a partial once-off drawdown of the private pension scheme and section 19 of the Finance Act.

Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation (Deputy John Perry)

I thank the Deputy for raising this very important issue. I am taking the matter on behalf of the Minister for Social Protection.

Pensions are a long-term investment aimed at ensuring people have an adequate income in retirement. Government policy supports this aspiration through generous tax reliefs and we are currently reforming the pension system to ensure its future sustainability.

Early withdrawals of pension savings are not permitted or desirable for several reasons. The principal reason is that funds, and the associated tax relief on contributions, are designed to support people in later life to ensure they have an adequate income. This requires pensions to be long-term vehicles based on the principle that savings will be locked away until retirement.

Allowing access to pension savings before retirement or pension age would be a significant change to pension policy and the basis of pension savings in Ireland. At the request of the Economic Management Council, the issue has been considered in detail by an interdepartmental ad hoc group, chaired by the Department of Social Protection. The group concluded that the principle of pension savings being locked away until pension age should be maintained, and it reported this to the EMC. The interdepartmental group on mortgage arrears also examined the issue of early access to pensions and did not recommend such an approach.

The idea of allowing people to access their pension savings early to pay off mortgage debt or to increase their spending power may seem attractive, particularly at the moment. However, the resulting reduction in pension savings could have significant negative consequences in the long term and in particular it fails to address the group who may be most affected by personal debt or mortgage arrears. Younger people are unlikely to have significant pension savings and where their pension scheme has incurred losses, as many have over the past number of years, early withdrawal of funds would mean very poor value for money. There is no guarantee the funds could be repaid or that people could make up these losses. Where people are close to retirement, an early withdrawal of funds could significantly diminish the pension they receive as they may not have time before retirement age to fill the gap left by such a withdrawal.

Only 51% of people in employment aged 20 to 69 have pension coverage. This relatively low rate of pension coverage is a concern. The programme for Government includes a commitment to reforming the pension system progressively to achieve universal coverage, with particular focus on lower-paid workers. Therefore, a national employment pensions scheme based on an automatic enrolment approach is being developed. Allowing people access to their pension savings before pension age would run totally counter to the policy of encouraging more people to save more for their retirement.

There are no proposals at the moment to amend the legislation to provide for early access to pension funds.

Deputy Mary Mitchell O’Connor

I thank the Minister of State but I would still ask him to look at this. The Irish Brokers Association gave a presentation yesterday to the Joint Committee on Jobs, Social Protection and Education and argued very strongly for the case of pension funds being released on a once off basis. It also argued that the Government should take a 20% tax and to put all of that money back into our economy.

I also mentioned AVCs, additional voluntary contributions, which are over and above pensions that were saved. Many people bought AVCs during the boom when they were paid bonuses and so on. I also ask the Minister to look at section 19 of the Finance Act. I got a tax consultant to look at it and she felt it is a very unfair part of the Act. I think a review of that section would help many distressed mortgage holders and many people in business who are in trouble. It would also provide a huge boost to our economy if that money was to come back in. I know it has not happened, but the Irish Brokers Association pointed out that it has happened in California, so I ask the Minister of State to look at that model.

Deputy John Perry

The EMC concluded that principal pension savings that are locked away should be maintained and it reported this to the Government. The interdepartmental group on mortgage arrears also examined this. There is a temptation to open this up and I can see the benefits in the short term. However, this was given a major examination by the EMC.

The implications of section 19 of the Finance Act can be raised with the Minister for Finance. It is a big concern that only 51% in employment aged between 20 and 69 have pension coverage, so clearly there are many people under pressure who would not have the facility of a pension. That is the concern of the Government. Bringing a universal concept to that area would be a very wise investment for later years.

From the reply given by the Minister, Deputy Burton, no consideration is being given at the moment to the Deputy's proposals. However, the Deputy can raise them with the Minister for Social Protection and the Minister for Finance and I have no doubt they will reply to her.

School Transport

Deputy Pearse Doherty

This is an issue that I and my party have been raising for quite a while, since it was announced in the 2011 budget by the Fianna Fáil Government of the time. The rule that will kick in from September 2012 means the catchment boundary areas, which determined eligibility for school transport for post-primary pupils, will cease and all post-primary students will be required to attend their nearest post-primary education centre, having regard to ethos and language. On the face of it, one would think there is nothing wrong with that because they should be going to their school. It does not make sense passing other schools and diverting students to schools that are further away. That sounds fine on paper, but when we look at the impact of this on the ground, it is a very different story.

In the last few weeks, people have started to focus on the fact that this cut, which was announced two years ago, will take effect in September. My office in Donegal and the local Sinn Féin councillor, Cora Harvey, have been inundated with people coming to us with issues in respect of these new criteria. A number of post-primary schools in the county will be affected by this, particularly in the region of Stranorlar. Finn Valley College and St. Columba's school would have been within the catchment area of Castlefin, Doneyloop, Lifford and Liscooly but will no longer be and the students will now be asked to attend the school in Raphoe. A total of 22 students in Castlefin will go to Stranorlar and the same applies to ten students in Ballylast, four students in Donaghmore and Liscooly, two students in The Alt, as well as others in Lifford. Up to 40 students who traditionally would have gone to the schools in Stranorlar will be told they are no longer eligible for school transport, unless they decide to attend a different school.

Existing students will still be provided with transport from these areas. The child from Castlefin who is in first or fourth year will still be transported to school in Ballybofey, but the new student in first year will be told he or she has to travel to Raphoe. This is just one example and the position in other parts of the county is similar, including Creeslough, Milford and Pobalscoil Cloich Cheannfhaola. Many parents are very annoyed because next September some children in a family will be travelling to one school while the first year student will be travelling to another. Families are being split and bus pick-up points changed, with the result that parents will have to drive their children a long distance to pick-up points. The bus routes follow different timetables which has resulted in confusion and difficulties.

I am unsure as to how this represents a saving and ask if the lead-in time for the new arrangements is sufficient. I also ask the Minister to review the scheme and describe the impact of the change on schools in Stranorlar and parents and pupils.

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Skills (Deputy Sean Sherlock)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. He has spoken about a specific area in County Donegal. The broader school transport scheme is a significant operation managed by Bus Éireann on behalf of the Department. It transports 113,000 children, including more than 8,000 with special needs, and 4,000 vehicles are used daily. It has been in operation for more than 40 years.

For the purposes of replying to the Deputy, the definition of school transport catchment boundaries has been the subject of many submissions and representations to the Department during the years. It is widely considered by many that the current catchment boundary areas do not reflect changed demographics. Changes to the post-primary school transport scheme were announced in budget 2011. One of these changes which will take effect from the commencement of the 2012-13 school year means that the use of the catchment area system as a means of determining eligibility will cease for all pupils entering a post-primary school as first entrants. The point made by the Deputy is that this creates the potential to split families.

By way of providing assistance and acknowledging County Donegal as a peripheral location, I suggest the Deputy either make direct representations to the Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, who has responsibility for school transport or contact the school transport section of the Department. I acknowledge there will be anomalies under the scheme.

On the budgetary provision, there are no two ways about it, a budgetary saving will be made, but if it can be done in a way that tries to apply the principles of common sense and weed out anomalies so as to avoid the splitting of family members and if a special case can be made for the region to which the Deputy refers, my respectful suggestion to him is to make representations to the Minister.

Deputy Pearse Doherty

I welcome the invitation to make representations on behalf of the schools in question to the Department and the Minister of State and I will avail of the opportunity to do so.

The Minister of State referred to special circumstances in County Donegal. Ballybofey is situated close to the Border. I was very critical of the old catchment boundary system which was archaic and needed to be reviewed. However, the new system contains a number of anomalies which need to be rooted out. If the Department and the Minister were flexible, a common-sense solution could be found. It is in no one's benefit to have family members split. While the argument could be made that the aim of the lead-in time was to allow parents to move children from one school to another, it is not possible or sensible to do this midstream in the case of a family with a junior and senior cycle student.

I refer to the impact of the scheme on the administration of schools. Some schools still do not know whether the 40 children will come to them because the children still have the option of not availing of the school transport scheme arrangements. The information on staffing needs was required to be submitted to the Department by last March, but schools are still unsure of the numbers of children who plan to attend. There is a lot of anger among parents. I will make representations to the Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, who has direct responsibility for the school transport scheme to have it adapted.

Deputy Sean Sherlock

A recent survey showed that 82% of pupils attended their nearest post-primary school. I agree that there can be anomalies in the system which have been well documented by the Deputy. I will speak to the Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, about the matter. I also advise the Deputy to make representations to the school transport section of the Department.

Telecommunications Services

Deputy Michael McCarthy

In case the Acting Chairman thinks my matter has something to do with the number of bachelors in west Cork, Dunmanway, Kinsale or Skibbereen, MAN is short for metropolitan area network. I thank the Acting Chairman for giving me the opportunity to raise this matter regarding fibre optic infrastructure and the creation of jobs and the provision of investment in rural Ireland.

The metropolitan area network, MAN, is high-end infrastructure. There is a perception that rural Ireland is being attacked in an effort to make savings. I refer to the excellent initiatives, not least taken by the Minister of State, Deputy Lucinda Creighton, to include primary schools in the European project and want to see us build on existing infrastructure. There are three metropolitan area networks, MANs, lying dormant in west Cork over the past seven years. They are connected in Skibbereen, Kinsale and Dunmanway. To date, they remain to be connected to the relevant service providers. All of the MANs are managed and operated by e|net who were appointed by the Department following a procurement process to make the networks available to the telecommunications sector.

Each of the three networks holds within it the vast potential to create hundreds of jobs, if not more, and to equip local businesses in the areas I have outlined, Kinsale, Dunmanway and Skibbereen. I refer to equipping those businesses with high broadband capacity and unlimited speed. The economic benefits of having metropolitan area networks in a rural town are wide ranging and self-explanatory. Every town, regardless of whether it is in an urban or rural setting needs a broadband-literate population and business community to further develop itself economically. A modern and effective communications network is essential and is the bedrock of any business or thriving rural economy and community. Everyone benefits from that, from the large corporations to educational providers and Government institutions among others. Broadband delivered on a fibre optic cable is an essential requirement for all of that.

In addition to high capacity and unlimited speed, the MANs are separate from other networks and thus provide an alternative and increase competition. Each connected network is routed to access the major industrial and commercial area and provides the essential infrastructure heavy broadband users need to have the services they require delivered to their door. In addition, a metropolitan area network can increase workplace flexibility for smaller businesses, as it can accommodate people who are increasingly beginning to blur the lines between home and work boundaries. By enabling greater broadband capability, daily administration tasks could be performed at home thus helping to relieve traffic congestion and allow for flexible child care arrangements. Despite the unemployment crisis those are obviously still issues for people who are affected by them. The failure to date to connect any of those networks to the relevant services required to make each one go live is a disappointment for the towns concerned.

The infrastructure is in place. It is about connectivity. We are not starting from a blank canvas. A former Deputy from my constituency, the former Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mr. Joe Walsh, secured funding for the provision of a fibre optic network to the technology park in Clonakilty approximately 11 years ago. There are approximately 1,000 jobs in the park, which is due to the vision of the former Minister, Mr. Joe Walsh. I acknowledge that. The work has stood the test of time throughout the economic crisis with regard to what investment in rural broadband can do for sustainable jobs in a rural setting.

Business people from all over west Cork say that when one goes to State agencies such as Enterprise Ireland or the IDA for grant assistance the first question asked is whether there is an appropriate fibre optic infrastructure in the local area. The answer is self-explanatory. I await the Minister's reply with great anticipation. I will comment further following the reply.

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (Deputy Pat Rabbitte)

I thank Deputy Michael McCarthy for giving me the opportunity to respond on this important matter.

Deputy McCarthy will be aware that the electronic communications market here is a fully liberalised market and regulated by the independent regulator, the Commission for Communications Regulation, ComReg. The provision and quality of electronic communications services, including broadband, is a matter for private sector service providers, regulated and licensed by ComReg. The State is not a service provider in the telecoms market and tends to intervene only in cases of demonstrated market failure. Under one such intervention, the Government's regional broadband programme, there were a total of 11 MANs built in County Cork covering 15 towns, including the four towns that are Deputy McCarthy's immediate concern, Skibbereen, Bantry, Dunmanway and Kinsale.

The MANs are operated and managed on behalf of the State by a managed services entity, MSE, e|net, a Limerick based company. Three of the MANs in west Cork were handed over to e|net in 2010. The Kinsale MAN will be completed this year and handed over to e|net on completion. I have been advised by e|net that the Bantry MAN is now active and that the MAN in Dunmanway is expected to be live in the next month or so. While the Skibbereen MAN is available for use, it does not have connections. E|net is in active discussions with local business representatives with the aim of stimulating demand for MAN-based services.

The demand for services in a MAN town is the primary factor for e|net to consider when deciding to connect a MAN to a backhaul service. To commit to the significant cost of a backhaul connection, e|net must be confident that there is sufficient demand on the MAN to justify the costs. Businesses that wish to connect to a MAN can do so by contacting e|net, who will then meet with the business to discuss the type of services required.

In addition to the MANs programme, the national broadband scheme, NBS, is another example of targeted State intervention in the telecoms market. The NBS network is now complete and services have been available in all 1,028 designated electoral divisions since October 2010. I am pleased to say that all premises located within the 96 designated electoral divisions in County Cork can now avail of NBS services.

I envisage that greater use will be made of the MANs in the coming years to provide bigger broadband to more businesses and citizens. I should highlight that it is important to understand the long-term nature of the MANs investment. The MANs significantly enhance the productive capacity of the local economies in which they were built. While the networks will be available for generations to come, and facilitate digital-based business of the future, they may not be used immediately, but they are available and are already playing a part in helping this country to meet its targets under the European Union's Digital Agenda for Europe. I would welcome any initiatives that lead to greater use of the MANs in Cork and nationally.

The Government accepts that the widespread availability of high-speed broadband is a key requirement in delivering future economic and social development. With basic broadband services available across the country, the challenge now is to accelerate the roll-out of high speed services.

I chair the next generation broadband task force. The task force is currently considering how best to facilitate the roll-out of next generation broadband throughout the country, which reflects a commitment under the NewERA proposals in the programme for Government. The task force will conclude its deliberations shortly. It is my intention to consider the findings, conclusions and recommendations of the report of the task force and to move quickly thereafter to put in place the optimal policy environment for the delivery of high-speed broadband and thereby assist in delivering on the commitment in the programme for Government.

The Acting Chairman, Deputy Tuffy, was present on Monday when I had the pleasure of announcing the roll-out of high-speed industrial strength broadband to every second-level school. On this occasion it did not include Cork South-West but it will next time around. The first 200 schools will be connected up along the north-west coast in 2012.

Deputy Michael McCarthy

I acknowledge the sentiments in the reply. One of the proposals put to me locally is that one can establish a resilient circle connecting the metropolitan area networks from the Bishopstown roundabout going to Dunmanway, Bantry, Skibbereen, Kinsale and back into Carrigaline and make it part of the Cork city metropolitan area network because that has global connectivity. We are all well aware of the constraints on Government but this is one of the Departments that can take the lead in terms of providing the infrastructure necessary to encourage the expansion of jobs and the creation of jobs. Progress has been made in Kinsale in recent times, which I welcome. With no pun intended, I urge departmental officials to accelerate their involvement with the officials in Cork County Council who are tasked with handling the delivery of the networks in towns across Cork.

There is a strong appetite for networks in Skibbereen. Putting the onus on the potential user of the service is all very well, but a Department-led initiative is required if the networks are to be connected. It is one way to stop the perception of an attack on rural Ireland, a notion that I reject. Through this process, we can provide infrastructure to create the conditions that are necessary for job creation.

When one considers Departments, spending and budgets, the Departments of Health, Education and Skills and Social Protection come to mind, but the Minister's Department can take the lead in job creation.

Deputy Pat Rabbitte

I am familiar with Deputy McCarthy's opinions on this critical connectivity issue because he has canvassed my position on it several times. He is right, not only in terms of the importance of job creation, but in terms of the better provision of services locally.

Regarding the Deputy's particular point about Skibbereen, there is a difference between the multi-fibre optic cable around the town being dormant, yet lit, and being accessed by local businesses. I would happily facilitate the Deputy if his wish is for local business people to meet and discuss with e|net how they might make optimum use of the existing service.

People have criticised the previous Government for the major expenditure of approximately €170 million on providing metropolitan area networks, MANs, around the country, given that half of them are still not lit, but I am not one of the critics. The expenditure was a valuable addition to necessary infrastructure. Even if it takes time for the capacity of the MANs to be exploited by local businesses, it will still be valuable.

The decision to roll out industrial strength broadband to second level schools is one of the most important decisions the Government will make. The impact on teaching and learning is remarkable and energising. In terms of the future digital economy and the knowledge society, we could not take a more valuable step towards equipping our young people for the future or, through the use of digital enterprises, providing the kind of employment the Deputy is advocating.