When I reported to the Dáil on 16 December last on the meeting of the European Council in Brussels on 10 and 11 December 1993, I stated that the European Commission's White Paper on Growth, Competitiveness and Employment received a unanimous welcome from the Council. This endorsement of the White Paper by the Council, which I obviously share, was reflected in the adoption by the Council of an action plan based on the prescriptions set out in the White Paper. As stated in the Council conclusions the action plan includes specific measures at the levels of the EU and of the member states directed at, in the short-term, reversing the rising unemployment trend and then, by the end of the century, significantly reducing the number of unemployed, at present standing at the unacceptable level of 17 million.
At EU level the emphasis in both the White Paper and the action plan is primarily on the full use of the potential of the single market with particular reference to small and medium sized enterprises and development of trans-European networks and of the new information and communication technologies. In regard to the trans-European networks and the new technologies two expert groups representative of the 12 member states have been established to chart the way in which the full potential of these can be realised throughout Europe. In addition implementation at Community level is being followed up by the various responsible ministerial councils. Ireland is participating fully in the follow-up at EU level.
Measures to be adopted domestically by member states as recommended by the White Paper and the action plan include the following: improving education and training systems for young people and the unemployed: better use of public funds set aside for combating unemployment and targeted reductions in the indirect cost of labour particularly in regard to less-skilled work.
Those national measures are all to be undertaken within a stable and coherent economic and monetary framework while ensuring a continued high level of social protection.
Government policy is and will remain fully consistent with the recommendations for domestic action set out in the White Paper. The National Development Plan 1994-1999 and the Programme for Competitiveness and Work both have employment as their key aim. They include significant provision for measures targeted at unemployment, in particular long-term unemployment and for action aimed at improving education and training for the unemployed.
At a more specific level the recent budget and the forthcoming Finance Bill have action on employment and on education and training as key objectives. The 1994 budget specifically targeted lower paid employment through tax concessions, relief in the burden of employers' social security contributions and exemption from the health and employment training levies. The budget also contained a number of other incentives aimed at promoting investment and job creation especially in small and medium sized enterprises.