Unemployment Continues To Rise

Responding to the increased rate of unemployment as detailed in the CSO Quarterly National Household Survey published today Sinn Féin Deputy Peadar Tóibín said that after 450 days in office the government was clearly failing the working generation.

The survey showed that there was an annual decrease in employment of 1.0% or 18,100 in the year to the first quarter of 2012, bringing total employment to 1,786,100. Unemployment increased by 13,300 (+4.5%) in the year to Q1 2012. The long-term unemployment rate increased from 7.8% to 8.9% over the year to Q1 2012. Long-term unemployment accounted for 60.6% of total unemployment in Q1 2012.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased from 14.5% to 14.8% over the quarter. We also know that over 70,000 people emigrated last year.

According to deputy Tóibín: "Behind each of these figures there is an individual and often a family”. These figures are a shocking indictment of a government which fought an election campaign and then a referendum campaign on the basis of jobs. It puts pay to the nonsense of the vacuous spin that jobs are a priority of this government. The record of the last 450 days of government speaks for itself.

"Sinn Féin is calling for a three year investment package in the region of €13 billion focusing on infrastructure and new enterprises. This money could be sourced from the discretionary portfolio of the National Pension Reserve Fund, matching funding from the European Investment Bank and an investment from the Private Pension sector. This stimulus along with enterprise reforms and supports would help kick start the Irish economy, create long term competitive advantages and get create 130,000 jobs directly over three years."

(CD)