This from the Irish Times today:

THE OIREACHTAS public accounts committee needs increased resources if it is to deal effectively with its workload in examining accountability in various State bodies and Government departments, its members said yesterday.

“There aren’t the resources there that we need,” Fine Gael TD and committee member Eoghan Murphy said at the launch of two reports by the committee.

“There is a lot coming in. People are demanding more from their public representatives . . . and rightly so, but it is also at a time where we have less resources and we try to manage it as best we can, but a committee as important as this doing its work week in week out does need more,” Mr Murphy said.

Chairman of the committee John McGuinness said he agreed the committee needed more resources to carry out its remit.

“We have increased the staff from three in support of the committee by one member and perhaps it is something the Government could look at in the context of the volume of work that we have to do in resourcing the committee much better, but we work with the Government in relation to that and we have received some positive responses,” Mr McGuinness said.

“In terms of numbers there’s 140 people employed in the CAG’s [Comptroller and Auditor General] office and yet those of us that are looking at public accounts and so on, there’s just [four] support staff. I would agree with Deputy Murphy that much more needs to be done in that area if we are to deliver on all of the work that is expected of us.”

He added that the committee would like to see the CAG’s powers extended to be able to examine the accounts at local government level, which would then bring it under the committee’s remit.

“When you look at accountability in local government it is an issue for us. We want to see the CAG empowered to look at local authorities because they do spend €5 billion a year that we can’t pursue, so we are anxious to deal in a comprehensive way, with the spending of taxpayers’ money regardless of where it goes.

“To that extent we would like to be empowered.”

The following is a provisional list from the Department of Enterprise detailing export of military goods and dual-use item (items that can have military or non-military uses) in 2011.

This correspondence was received today at the Public Accounts Committee following my request.

The document is 9 pages long and has been scanned in so requires some scrolling.

Please click here.

The Rehab Group announced today, Wednesday 16th May, that it plans to recruit 750 staff in its operations over the next three years, with over 400 of those to be based in Ireland.

The Rehab Group currently employs over 3,500 people, with 2,500 staff based in Ireland and another 1,000 in the UK, Poland and the Netherlands.

The new posts arise in the areas of training, education, health and social care, IT, sales and marketing, management and administration.

Commenting on the announcement Angela Kerins, Chief Executive, Rehab Group noted “Rehab has a significant growth strategy for 2012 to 2015 in all of its areas of activity. We are currently looking further afield at new opportunities and hope to have some important new developments to announce later this year.

“Rehab Group provides health, social care, education and training services to 56,000 people in four EU member states and we aim to grow this to supporting 75,000 people by 2015. Our services are recognised internationally, and have proven results. For example, 90% of people who complete our training courses here in Ireland go on to further education, training or employment. Our overriding objective is to improve the lives of the people we support and to provide sustainable employment for our staff, both with and without disabilities.

“Most people are familiar with Rehab Group as a provider of services to people with disabilities and others who are marginalised in their communities, but may not be aware that in addition to our health and education services in Ireland and the UK, we run a number of businesses in each of the four countries in which we work. For example, Rehab is Ireland’s largest processor of glass for recycling, exporting nearly 100,000 tonnes of glass per year. We also operate a resource recovery business in Ireland, the UK and the Netherlands and an international logistics business in Poland and the Netherlands, as well as a retail business and significant gaming and lottery interests. While like everyone else we experience difficulties in some markets, overall we have a positive view of our future development and believe that this can be achieved with hard work, a ‘can-do’ attitude and a little adventure into new areas.”

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton said:
“A central part of our plan for jobs and growth is creating a powerful engine of indigenous enterprise. Yes we must continue to attract world-class multinational companies, but we must also ensure that we have more Irish companies growing to scale, competing and succeeding in world markets, and creating more jobs.
“Rehab is an Irish organisation which had success in its original field, branched out into new sectors, competed and succeeded in export markets and created large-scale employment. Today’s announcement that it is to create 750 new jobs over the next three years is very welcome. I am determined that, through continued implementation of the Action Plan for Jobs, we can see more Irish companies replicate this success and drive the sustainable jobs recovery that we need.”

The Rehab Group will be recruiting on an ongoing basis over the coming months to positions both in Ireland and overseas, and vacancies will be advertised on its website www.rehab.ie

73 of the 400 new jobs are currently being recruited, rising to 150 in the next year with the remainder to come on stream over the next three years. In addition, 115 jobs have been created on Rehab Group construction projects in Limerick, Portlaoise and Sligo.

A further 350 job opportunities will arise within Rehab Group companies overseas, with 80 people already recruited overseas this year.

Not long after it was announced that we were to have a referendum on the fiscal compact treaty, I flew out to Moscow to take part in an international team observing the Presidential election there.

I met many people there who believed that, regardless of what may or may not take place on polling day, Russia needed a strong leader like Putin if it was to continue as a stable nation. They placed stability and security ahead of democracy. Which I found interesting.

Samuel Huntington, famous for his book ‘The Clash of Civilizations’, charted what he called “the third wave of democratisation”, which took place (roughly) between 1970 and 2010, and saw a surge in countries moving towards democracy, including Russia.

Francis Fukuyama, commenting on this transition, notes that 1 in 5 of those new democracies have since reverted back to authoritarianism or have seen a significant erosion of democratic values. Look at Russia and it’s concept of ‘managed democracy’ and we must consider it one of these relapses.

Now just before anyone jumps to the wrong conclusion, I am not seeking any sort of comparison here between recent events in the EU and the erosion of democracy elsewhere. Quite the contrary.

My point is about adaptability. In Fukuyama’s ‘The Origins of Political Order’ he states that “Political decay occurs when political systems fail to adjust to changing circumstances”. When they fail to adapt to meet the needs of the people or the needs of the time (often both).

We here in Ireland are facing a major challenge and it concerns the adaptability of our political institutions: a challenge to the capacity of our democracy to deliver the changes that the people want to see given the radically changed circumstances. Will our institutions be able to adjust – will we be able to lead that adjustment? And what will we adjust to? More or less democracy? Or simply a different type of democracy?

The European Union is facing the exact same challenge. There has been a massive economic shock. It has exposed flaws in the structure. And now change is under way. Countries are adapting to the new situation. The infrastructure of the EU is adapting. What this adjustment will bring is still uncertain, but at the very least we can agree that some form of change is necessary. The right leadership will bring about the right change.

The great difficulty though for Ireland to meet this challenge at the present moment in time is the bailout agreement – the temporary suspension of control over our own affairs. Because of the extreme deficit we are too exposed to external events. Because of the extreme deficit we require assistance and dictation from the troika. That is why cutting deficit to within reasonable levels is so important.

Our immediate aspiration is to change our situation – to regain control over our fiscal affairs and to be able to borrow on the markets independently. It might sound counter intuitive but we need the option of a permanent bailout fund to be able to avoid ever having to use it.

We need the continuation of the EFSF and we need the European Stability Mechanism. Either in case we cannot meet all of our funding requirements post 2013; or, to improve our borrowing position on the markets by providing a form of guaranteed insurance on those borrowings (which is what access to the ESM will do).

And that is why we need the fiscal compact treaty. Because it guarantees access to the permanent fund. People will argue over whether or not this should be the case. They will raise other inadequacies both of the treaty and the process. But we are here now and we have a decision to make.

There are bigger questions to be asked – greater choices to be made. But these will have to wait to be answered until we are on firmer footing financially. People will seek to use this referendum campaign to attempt to answer these bigger questions. This would be a mistake. I think it is the wrong campaign for that.

In the European context, I do not think this referendum should be about our membership of the euro or our commitment to future fiscal union, and it certainly should not be about the long term debt situation or the possible restructuring of the promissory notes. It should be confined to the treaty itself and its necessity for us in moving to a post-bailout situation.

Once the referendum is held, and if we then have access to the ESM guaranteed, we will have the room to discuss the greater existential questions about the political constitution of this Republic and what our future ambitions are for the political and fiscal infrastructure of our European Union. But only then.

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I compliment Deputy Calleary on his thoughtful contribution. This is an island and we must trade or we die. We do not just trade in goods and services but also politically, culturally, academically and in myriad ways. There is an idea in certain quarters that we can resolve our great problems alone. We cannot, and neither can others. There are those who would have us not only burn bondholders and investors but also relationships, credibility and confidence in Ireland’s commitment to the wider world. We have a reputation to rebuild. That means re-engaging with those countries, organisations and issues we ignored in the past during the boom years. It means fulfilling our responsibilities beyond our shores.

I am glad the Tánaiste and the Whips facilitated the time for this debate so the Dáil could discuss the important work of the OSCE. I was privileged to be asked by the Taoiseach and Tánaiste to head the Oireachtas delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE. While the Minister and other Deputies have given the House a clear picture of the work of the organisation, this is our Parliament and I will speak on the important work being done in the organisation’s Parliamentary Assembly. Initially, however, I commend the Tánaiste and all the diplomatic staff working here in Dublin in the task force headed by Ambassador Frank Cogan and in Vienna headed by Ambassador Eoin O’Leary. They and their staff are a compliment to the Tánaiste and the way he has assumed and directed his chairmanship of the OSCE.

I wish to comment briefly on the recent event in the Royal Hospital Kilmainham. As a Member of the Dáil and as an Irish person, I was proud to receive the compliments I received there on behalf of the Government for all the good work the Tánaiste and the diplomatic corps have done in the chairmanship role of the organisation. The aforementioned “Shared Future”conference was on the Northern Ireland peace process and tried to use Irish history as a potential case study for other situations throughout the world. Those who attended, both from Ireland and the dignitaries and diplomats who came from abroad, derived much benefit from it and I certainly did. It stands as a fine example of the excellent work being done by the Government in this sphere. It also is important to recognise this is being done with a reduced budget and with reduced resources.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE is the parliamentary dimension of the organisation’s work, which I have experienced a number of times since my election to the Dáil. We deal with the same issues as the OSCE but as parliamentarians and not as governments. The primary task of the Assembly is to facilitate interparliamentary dialogue in an effort to meet the challenges of democracy throughout the OSCE area. The Assembly comprises 320 parliamentarians from 56 countries who discuss issues that matter to each one of them. In my experience, it is a powerful thing in which to be involved. The six-member Oireachtas delegation to the OSCE includes Deputies Heather Humphreys, Ann Phelan, Arthur Spring and Stephen Donnelly and Senator Jim Walsh. While we have political allegiances here at home, we leave these behind when we attend the Assembly, where we work as a unit. We represent our country and I believe we do so well. One of the delegation’s driving motivations is to represent its country as best it can and to make a meaningful contribution to the Assembly’s work. I believe we are fortunate, in that so many parliamentarians from our partner countries approach it in the same way.

In the course of the meetings we have attended, the delegation has discussed a number of issues, from Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau to cybersecurity and cybercrime, human trafficking, detention of political prisoners in, for example, Ukraine, election monitoring in a number of countries including Tunisia and conflict resolution in areas like Nagorno-Karabakh.

As it is the largest regional security organisation in the world, the brief is wide-ranging but I will touch on a few of the issues the Parliamentary Assembly has dealt with to date. One such issue is human trafficking, to which Deputy Ann Phelan already has referred briefly. In February, Ms Maria Grazia Giammarinaro visited Dublin and met our delegation here. Ms Grazia Giammarinaro is the OSCE special representative and co-ordinator for combatting trafficking in human beings. We discussed at length in our meeting the issue of human trafficking and how it relates to forced labour. Subsequently and following on from that meeting, we have engaged with Ms Grazia again, with fellow Assembly members from the United States in particular, as well as other interested partners, in the hope of the Irish delegation organising a side-event at a future meeting to help to try to bring this issue more to the fore in the work of both the Assembly and the OSCE, as well as to help educate other parliamentarians as to the types of laws and measures that could be introduced in their own countries to help with this matter, which also of course affects Ireland. The benefit of this multilateral organisation is demonstrated by working together on such an important issue.

As for Syria, as the conflict there escalated to yet another level of violence and having discussed the issue of Syria at the Parliamentary Assembly in Vienna, Deputies Spring, Ann Phelan and I raised the crisis in Syria recently as a topical issue. This is a good example of how the work of the Assembly reflects back on individual parliaments and parliamentarians. Had it not been for the discussions in which we had participated previously, I am unsure whether we would have taken such an interest in this conflict. This is a major positive because the more parliamentarians who raise this issue, the more Governments that must pay attention and, one hopes, the more pressure that will be brought to bear on the Syrian Government. It is important to make this point today in particular in light of the most recent events in that country and the terrible things that are happening.

Election monitoring comprises another very important element of the work of both the Assembly and the OSCE. Much of the work of the OSCE is conducted through the organisation’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, which deals in the main with election monitoring and is headed most capably by Ambassador Lenarcic in his office based in Warsaw. Long and short-term observers, sponsored by governments including the Government of Ireland, are deployed to countries throughout the organisation to monitor their elections and to ensure they are free and fair. There is no discrimination here and this year, election monitors will be deployed in both Russia and the United States to monitor the presidential elections there. An essential component of these missions is the delegation from the OSCE’s Parliamentary Assembly. As parliamentarians, people who have been through the election process themselves, they add an extra dimension of scrutiny to proceedings, a perhaps more relevant experience in so far as assessing the conduct of elections is concerned. While the work of such delegations cannot be done without the long and short-term observers, the experience they bring on the day, on the ground, in the middle of the seeming chaos that is the democratic election process, is critical.

If I may, I will speak briefly on my personal experience in Russia, because I was fortunate to witness this at first-hand, when the Assembly decided to send an observation mission to the Russian presidential elections in March. Much is happening in Russia on the political front at present and it was the good work of the OSCE, as the only independent external observers of the parliamentary elections to the Duma last December, that was able to legitimately determine the conduct of those elections. We travelled to the presidential elections to continue that good work. As a member organisation of the OSCE, it is important that the Assembly continues in its commitment to its fellow parliamentarians there and the people they represent. This was a fascinating experience for me as a new and young Deputy. Moreover, I believe, every Member of this House should at some stage participate in an observation mission abroad. One learns in a short time the true value of democracy, of strong political and democratic institutions and of the power of giving the franchise, that is, the vote and a voice, to those who may not have exercised it before or who may not be able to exercise it as freely as do people here. This Parliament would be stronger, were each Member to take time to observe the election processes in our OSCE partner countries.

I spent six days in Moscow. We met the election observers the OSCE already had deployed on the ground, visited the Duma and met representatives of the different candidates and parties, as well as one of the candidates, Mr. Prokhorov, who ultimately came third in the election. We were briefed by civic society, including the Golos organisation, the operations of which we viewed and we met State-run and other independent media. On the day itself, I opened and closed a polling station in the Moscow north-central area, which was fascinating. I also visited many others throughout the day, including a polling station in a prison. It was quite something to observe how one administers an election on such a wide scale across nine timezones and a number of regions. I witnessed the count, did my tallies and reported back to my team in the early hours of the morning. Later that morning, there was a debriefing with all the monitoring teams in which reports were taken from all over the country. We held a press conference and then, for the time being at least, our work was done. However, I wish to cite the conclusions of the head of our delegation, Mr. Tonino Picula from Croatia, on that occasion:

There were serious problems from the very start of this election. The point of elections is that the outcome should be uncertain. This was not the case in Russia. There was no real competition and abuse of government resources ensured that the ultimate winner of the election was never in doubt.

This was the truth of the matter and Mr. Picula stated it as it needed to be stated, in stronger terms than others and following our direct experience there. This demonstrates the added value of the Parliamentary Assembly in a very meaningful and demonstrable way. I highlight this statement, while making no criticism of the essential work done by the OSCE observers or the participating governments of the OSCE in election monitoring. My point is only to emphasise the important additional dimension that parliamentarians, answerable only to the people who elect them, can bring to such situations.

In conclusion, our work as parliamentarians is important. This body, the OSCE, is essential. If it did not exist, it would be necessary to create it. I commend the new Secretary General, Ambassador Zannier, on all his good work to date. In so far as the Irish delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly is concerned, I thank the IPU here for its excellent support, as well as the Secretariat to the Assembly in Copenhagen, led ably by Secretary General Spencer Oliver, with his staff. Our Assembly President, a Greek parliamentarian and friend, is Petros Efthymiou and I personally congratulate him on serving the Assembly so well for the past two years. I also express my thanks to the diplomats who have assisted the delegation so well abroad and finally to my fellow members of the delegation for all of their hard work to date. Ireland has a reputation to rebuild abroad and the delegation’s work in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly is very much a part of that, as is the fine work the Tánaiste is doing in chairing the OSCE this year. It is not all selfish as I believe we are making a difference and we are making a significant contribution to international events.

The Secretary General of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport, and the Chief Executive of the National Roads Authority we in attendance at today’s PAC. Watch the proceedings here.

Today the Director General of the Central Statistics Office, and the Secretary General of the Department of the Taoiseach, were in attendance. Click here to watch the proceedings and scroll to 01.36.36 to watch my contribution.

5-city IDA mission to East, South and Mid-West to target investments from world-leading and start-up companies in technology and life-sciences

The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton TD, will departed on Sunday to lead a five-day, five-city investment mission to the East, South and Mid-West of the USA, to meet companies considering investing and creating jobs in Ireland.

The IDA mission to Boston, Raleigh, Atlanta, Minneapolis and Chicago will focus particularly on companies in the technology and health/life sciences sectors, and the Minister will meet 19 companies ranging from start-ups to multi-billion dollar world-leading companies.

During the five full days of the trip, the Minister, who will be accompanied by Barry O’Leary, CEO of IDA Ireland, as well as other officials, will meet 19 companies, including:

9 technology companies, including 4 in software
4 health/life-sciences companies
Companies also in the food, business services, aviation and financial services sectors
Companies with combined annual revenues of over $300billion and combined workforces of over 800,000 worldwide
Companies with operations already in Ireland as well as companies who may be considering investing here for the first time
Members of the US media

Before departing, Minister Bruton said:

“Foreign direct investment forms a key part of this Government’s strategy for growth and jobs. Multinational companies are responsible for 250,000 jobs and over €19billion of direct spend in our economy, and a string of announcements over recent weeks from world-leading companies including Apple and Mylan shows that these companies increasingly see Ireland as a location where they can invest and create jobs. Through the Action Plan for Jobs we are determined to build on this, and develop deeper relationships with more multinational companies to create more jobs”.

“During this busy week I will be meeting 19 companies from a wide range of sectors who are considering creating new jobs in Ireland. When I meet senior executives from multinationals like these, they are increasingly impressed by what Ireland has to offer as a gateway to a stable European market. They are generally interested to hear about Ireland’s skilled workforce, our pro-business environment, our tax offering, our base of multinationals already here, and also about any developments that might affect our relationship with Europe. I look forward to hearing their concerns and telling them that Ireland is open for business, open for investment, and my hope is that this will lead to more jobs announcements in the near future”.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

This is the eighth major trade/investment mission the Minister has travelled on since taking office, following:
Three IDA investment missions, two to the USA east coast, one to the west coast
Two Enterprise Ireland trade missions, one to Saudi Arabia and India, one to the south-eastern USA, accompanied by a total of 80 Irish companies looking to break into new export markets
A 7-day joint IDA/EI mission to China led by the Taoiseach
A Saint Patrick’s Day trip to the west coast of the USA, which included several meetings with IDA and EI target and client companies

Extracts from the Minister’s schedule as follows:

Sunday, April 29th 2012
16:15 Arrive Boston

Monday, April 30th 2012
07:00 Meeting with Health/Life Sciences company
09.30 Meeting with technology/chip development company
11.00 Meeting with technology/voice recognition technology company
12.30 Meeting with technology/software company
15.00 Meeting with technology/software company
18.40 Flight Departs for Raleigh, NC arriving at 20:55

Tuesday 1st May 2012
08:00 Meeting with technology/communications company
09:15 Meeting with technology/software company
11:30 Lunch meeting with technology/software company
14:45 Fly to Atlanta (arrive 16:15)
19:00 Dinner with target company

Wednesday 2nd May 2012
09:00 Meeting with technology company
12:05 Fly to Minneapolis (arrive 13.45)
15:30 Meeting with food company
16:45 Meeting with health/life sciences company

Thursday 3rd May 2012
09.00 Meeting with business services company
10.30 Meeting with health/life sciences company
13:10 Fly to Chicago (arrive 14:30)
16:00 Meeting with health/life sciences company
19:30 Dinner with existing and potential IDA clients

Friday 4th May 2012
08:00 Meeting with member of US media
09:00 Meeting with technology/e-commerce company
10:30 Meeting with target company
12:00 Lunch with financial services company
13:45 Meeting with financial services company
15:00 Depart for Airport
18.45 Return to Dublin

Today the Secretary General of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade appeared before the PAC. Click here to watch, and scroll to 29.59 to watch my contribution.