Published: Wednesday, 7th July, 2010 5:00pm

Good infrastructure vital for economic growth

Pic by==: 97

The news that Ireland may be technically out of recession has drawn little reaction from a population shocked by the events of the last 18 months or so.

For those without jobs and with little prospect of finding them there is no reason for optimism from this latest revelation by the financial establishment who know so much about the economy that one wonders how they managed to land us in this hole in the first place.

The signals about the United States economy are contradictory and its wellbeing is central to any recovery here.

It appears that the new government in Britain are committing themselves to the tough austerity measures we are now familiar with. It reaffirms the view that the tough times will be with us for a good while yet and learning to survive in this harsh new world is something that many well educated and jobless young people have to acclimatize to.

According to the Live Register 450,000 are signing on, an alarming figure. However, it includes people who are legitimately working and signing on part time so the number unemployed may not be as great as that. According to FAS the number of people out of work will peak at just less than 300,000 later this year before the figures taper off slowly.

According to FAS economist, Brian McCormick, the number of long term unemployed will account for more than half of those without work at the end of the year. Most of the long term unemployed were previously employed in construction and retail while the few jobs being created are mainly in the higher end skilled positions.

From the government's point of view it would be unwise to cutback on infrastructure projects that are essential to economic recovery and would provide jobs in construction. That is why it is vital that projects such as the Belturbet bypass which is due to commence next year should go ahead. It is very likely that the Belturbet bypass has gone beyond the point of no return and will have to be proceeded with but other roads such as the Virginia bypass must not be put on the back burner. Some people complain that during the boom years a greater proportion of money should have been saved for the rainy day or spent more wisely. However, the level of road development that was undertaken during era of the Celtic Tiger has transformed the image of this county to that of a modern European state. If necessary greater support from Europe for the implementation of vital strategic structural developments should be forthcoming. Now is a time when we need and deserve friends. Keeping our well educated young people here in Ireland rather than force them to emigrate must be prevented at all costs. bullet and plan for the lines to be put underground.

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