Social crises must be addressed

THERE could hardly be a more bleak picture of Ireland than the scenario depicted yesterday to mark the 30th birthday of the NESC, the national social and economic council.

It portrays a country bedeviled by rampant child poverty, educational disadvantage, inadequate childcare, underdeveloped services for people with disabilities, long-term unemployment, poor levels of training and alcohol and drug misuse.

This damning comment on the failure of successive Governments to grapple with such issues was mirrored on another front yesterday as ISME, the country’s small business group, described an Ireland where the black economy is growing, with racketeering and rogue operators flourishing.

If the ISME image is even close to the mark, it gives serious cause for concern and reflects badly on the Coalition’s failure to control costs which continue their upwards spiral across the board.

According to ISME chairman Robert Berney, the black economy accounts for unpaid taxes to the tune of €2 billion. This is enough to pay for benchmarking and boost the garda fight against crime.

Making a mockery of the Government’s assurances that prices would be kept in check, the explosion of the shadow economy is a direct result of service cutbacks and spiralling local government charges, plus unconscionably high insurance premiums which have sent hundreds of firms to the wall.

If anything, the draconian estimates from Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy conspired to make a bad situation worse, with a rash of stealth taxes to fund benchmarking pay awards in the public service.

Of particular concern is the fact that the activities of rogue operators make it difficult for legitimate companies to survive. The call from the ISME boss for an urgent clampdown is fully justified.

State agencies have an important role to play in fighting this trend. But it is essential to co-ordinate their activities so the culprits can be identified and brought to book.

In this context, however, the Revenue Commissioners stand accused of failing to combat the country’s economic underbelly. Instead of going after the growing army of fly-by-night operators, the Revenue persists in targeting complaint taxpayers.

Rather than nit-picking and harassing those who play it by the book, they should be focusing on the firms and individuals who specialise in beating the system.

It is difficult to divorce this naked exploitation of the Irish economy from the broader social canvas painted by the NESC.

Significantly, among those listening to Dr Rory O’Donnell’s no-nonsense address was Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. Hopefully, it will make him and his Government more aware of the harsh realities of life outside the cozy denizens of Dáil Éireann.

Emphasising the domino effects of poverty, the NESC emphasises the link with low levels of educational attainment, poor skills, vulnerable employment, inadequate levels of participation in the workforce and high dependence on the State.

Despite the widespread incidence of child poverty, Ireland spends less per child on primary and secondary-level education than most EU countries. In a 15-year span between 1996 and 2011, the number of secondary-level students will have dropped 20%.

The public will applaud the NESC’s broadside at the current concept of social partnership. Of course, the participants should adopt a wider agenda than merely sitting on fragmented committees, deadlocked by disagreement between the ideologies of unions, employers and the community and voluntary sector.

Not only is it morally right, it makes economic sense to seriously address the grave social problems which continue to plague Ireland today.