IBEC president calls on Government to do more to tackle unemployment

THE newly appointed president of IBEC used his first address in his new role to demand that more is done to address the spiralling rate of unemployment.

At last night’s IBEC’s President’s Dinner in Dublin, Leo Crawford said business could be the primary creator of jobs if the Government would only provide the conditions that would allow that to happen. “Unemployment is one of the greatest risks to Irish economic recovery, with 439,100 people now finding themselves on the live register,” said Mr Crawford, who is group chief executive of BWG group. “This is where the energy of Government, unions and business must focus. We must foster an environment for job creation and get Ireland working again.”

He said a critical next step was a revised capital expenditure programme that prioritised the development of strategic infrastructure, helped sustain and create jobs and incentivised private sector investment.