Opposition parties have today described as shocking the latest unemployment figures that show the rate at over 7 per cent.
The number claiming jobseekers' benefits rose by 16,900 to 277,200, the highest level since September 1996, while the number of people signing on for benefits is now 66 per cent higher than the same month last year.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) now estimates that the unemployment rate has reached 7.8 per cent, compared to 6.3 per cent at the end of the third quarter. The last time this rate was exceeded was in April 1998.
Fine Gael enterprise spokesman Leo Varadkar said unemployment was now certain to reach 8 per cent by the end of the year.
“A shocking 16,900 people lost their jobs in a single month, as did more than 106,000 people in the last 12 months. With unemployment up to 7.8 per cent, Ireland has overtaken the EU average for the first time in a decade. . . . This isn’t just a crisis, it’s an emergency,” Mr Varadkar said.
“Brian Cowen and Brian Lenihan seem paralysed by the soaring unemployment levels," the Fine Gael TD said, accusing the Taoiseach and Minister for Finance of failing to offer "any proposals to limit the damage".
He said Fine Gael was proposing that employers be given an incentive to create new jobs "to avert disaster". Under the proposal, employers should be exempt from paying PRSI in 2009 for additional staff that they take on.
"This would involve a minimal cost to the Exchequer, but would go a long way to minimising the impact of the recession," Mr Varadkar said.
Labour TD Willie Penrose, spokesman on Enterprise Trade and Employment, accused the Government of having its head in the sand.
“The Live Register figures published today are truly shocking and suggest that unemployment continues to spin out of control.”
“This economic turmoil is hitting local businesses and small-to-medium companies, particularly hard. It seems that the Government is happy to let this most vital sector struggle on, without any support or without any indication that that they will take action to ease some of the pressures.
“The Government has ignored calls by Labour to take specific measures such as establishing a Small Business Operational Fund to ensure that credit streams are made available to small and medium sized firms,” Mr Penrose said
Sinn Féin finance spokesman Arthur Morgan said the Government is “continuing to sleep walk” through an economic crisis. “Nearly two months on from Budget 2009 and we are still awaiting a job creation strategy from the Government.
“Its handling of the economic has been clueless. This was highlighted spectacularly yesterday when exchequer figures showed that the Government’s projected public finance figures were short by a billion euros,” Mr Morgan said.
The Sinn Féin TD said the Government has no plan to halt the slide in manufacturing exports, has damaged the retail sector with a “ridiculous” increase in VAT, and is failing to ensure credit for small and medium enterprises is available from banks.
The Irish Small & Medium Enterprises’ Association (Isme) said the latest Live Register increase was disastrous and warned the situation would deteriorate unless “immediate measures” were taken.
ISME head of research Jim Curran said: "The latest figures, together with the dramatic fall in taxation revenue, confirm that the economy is in dire straits.”
"The response of Government to date in tackling the situation has been non-existent, he said. “With crippling business costs already identified as a key factor leading to redundancies, businesses are requested to stomach increases in wage rates through the national agreement and rises in local charges.”
Isme has called for a suspension of the national pay deal and a freeze on all local charges for business in 2009.
The Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed (INOU) said the figures were a “stark reminder” of the unemployment problem facing the country. “Given the current economic situation, it is difficult to see when these figures will stop rising” said Bríd O’Brien, head of policy and media with the INOU.
The organisation urged state agencies to work on attracting investment to replace the jobs and to ensure there are supports for the unemployed and those losing their jobs.
