Paul McGrath
Ceist:19 Mr. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the estimate of the impact of the recent currency crisis on employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
Vol. 428 No. 6
19 Mr. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the estimate of the impact of the recent currency crisis on employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
49 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment the proposals, if any, he has to assist exporters to the sterling area and firms with a high level of exposure to competition from UK competitors in view of the continuing weakness of sterling and the consequent threat to jobs.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 19 and 49 together.
The £50 million made available by the previous Government on 6 October 1992 was acknowledged by industry to be an effective and an imaginative response to help firms adapt over a period to the massive and rapid devaluations of currencies which had been part of the ERM until September, 1992. To date it has been possible to assist some 650 firms with almost 30,000 employees under the Market Development Fund. That assistance has enabled all but three of those companies to continue in business and to take steps to adapt to the changed conditions of competition as a result of the instability of currencies in Europe.