Vol. 383 No. 5
(Limerick East) asked the Minister for Labour the plans he has for the setting up of FÁS placement offices in major European cities so as to assist Irish people already there and intending emigrants to find employment as soon as possible; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
4.
asked the Minister for Labour the plans, if any, he has for the provision of FÁS placement offices in capital cities of Europe so as to provide assistance to Irish people living there and to intending emigrants seeking employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
12.
asked the Minister for Labour if he will make plans for the setting up of FÁS placement offices in key cities of the European Community so as to help Irish emigrants and intending emigrants to find employment as soon as maybe; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 3, 4 and 12 together.
I have no plans at present for FÁS to set up placement offices in major European cities. The question of assisting Irish emigrants abroad and those intending to emigrate is one I have constantly under review.
Does the Minister think that the sum of £250,000, as contained in the Estimates, is adequate for the provision of emigrant services in England in view of yesterday's emigration figures which showed conclusively that emigration is still on the increase — from April 1987 to March 1988 the figure increased by over 5,000 — and because of the fact that this figure is the same as it was in 1987, even though inflation in the same period increased by over 14 per cent in England? There is now more pressure than ever on emigrant services in England because people are more aware of the existence of those services.
I do not think I was asked that question directly in any of the questions. The function of the DION Committee is to advise the Minister for Labour on matters pertaining to emigrant welfare and the allocation of the DION grant. I have met the committee a number of times and our last meeting was as recent as ten days ago. The sum of £250,000 is for the organisations involved in emigrant welfare and it is not the only money given to these organisations. In the case of Camden Town, money has been given to the CYTP to enable work to be carried out for aged Irish emigrants. I believe that £250,000 will be satisfactory to continue the same level of activity. It was never envisaged to cater for all their activities or to foot their whole bill. It is assistance given to DION so that they can allocate resources to some of these organisations.
In view of the public concern expressed by the agencies involved and also by the clergy concerning this amount I should like to ask the Minister if he could make representations to the Cabinet to have a further sum allocated from the national lottery towards the provision of these services? I think this would be justified in this case.
I already said on a recent occasion that the matter will be reviewed and I have discussed this with the DION Committee. If additional resources can be got from any location needless to say I will seek to get them.
Would the Minister agree that a significant proportion — although perhaps a minority — of Irish emigrants do require assistance in breaking into the labour market or require assistance in dealing with the social security services? Would he agree also that if any agency are to provide that support the only agency that are likely to be in a position to do so are FÁS?
I agree that these agencies do excellent work. FÁS are involved with people who are ill prepared for emigration and they hope to extend that campaign to try to stop people who are ill prepared for emigration from going abroad rather than sending the difficulties elsewhere and then having Irish organisations abroad deal with them. At a recent meeting with DION and with Father Scully and his colleagues in the Camden Centre, I was glad to hear them say that the problem has improved somewhat. That is because ill prepared people are less likely to go away because of the campaign in the schools by the teachers and the full time people in FÁS. Deputy Deenihan referred to the allocation that goes directly into these welfare agencies. They do an excellent job and we are grateful for that. Over a number of years the figure allocated has gone up from nothing to £250,000. That sum will continue to provide more or less the same services hopefully for fewer people.
The Minister has informed us of what the teachers and everyone else are doing to prepare people for emigration. What are the Minister and his colleagues doing to stop emigration? We were informed here yesterday that 32,000 people are leaving on a yearly basis. What is the Minister doing about the fact that young people are being asked to work for very low wages for very long hours in the area of Camden Town and in other areas in England? Can the Government do anything to stop this and will the Minister ensure that further moneys will be made available to stop the abuse of our emigrants?
In 1987 the Manpower service launched a pre-departure information service for prospective emigrants, a service which is now operated by FÁS through its network of offices. They provide counselling and guidance in order to discourage unplanned emigration. They also offer advice on training schemes and unemployment programmes available locally. It is also envisaged that the recently launched Youth Reach programme aimed at early school leavers will offer assistance to those who are likely to emigrate without the necessary preparation. This programme will offer young people who leave school without qualification up to 24 months education and training through a combination of programmes selected to suit particular needs.
It is not the experience of the agencies that the vast majority of the people who go abroad are exploited. One of the enticements to emigrate for young people is the rates that they can get abroad. I could fill the Deputy in with the kind of rates they get without qualifications.
