The level of corporation tax is far more relevant to the competitiveness and attractiveness of an economy for investors than pay levels, according to a leading British trade unionist.
The European Officer of the Transport and General Union, Mr Regan Scott, told a conference in Dublin yesterday it was neither fair nor realistic to place the onus for attracting inward investment on the poor and low-skilled in any society. He was commenting on the issue of national minimum wage rates.
Speaking at the Scheme Workers Alliance annual seminar, he said there was little commitment by the governments of EU member-states to tackle unemployment. There was continuing dependence on economic growth to generate jobs, even though it was well known that much of this growth was not capable of generating jobs.
Britain and Ireland are the only EU member-states without national minimum wage systems. Mr Scott said the debate in Ireland should not simply follow that in Britain. Minimum wage rates were not significant determinants of competitiveness for large-scale investors involved in the global economy.
Those who had lost out most, during the current economic boom were the "no-paid and the low-paid", MSF's Mr Tony Moriarty told the seminar. "Those who have gained most and will continue to gain are those whose income is derived primarily from profit, capital gains, interest and rent.
"Company profits are increasing by about 10 per cent per annum. Wages are rising by 3 to 4 per cent per annum."
Mr Brian Trench, of the School of Communications at Dublin City University, said the Internet offered opportunities for marginalised groups to participate meaningfully in society. But it was easier for organised groups to exploit these opportunities than individuals.
However, while the applications of the Internet were quite well known among community and voluntary organisations, they had found it difficult to put them into practice. Lack of funding, lack of time for training, inadequate accommodation, organisational instability and unwillingness to share information were among the factors involved, he said.
The Socialist Party TD, Mr Joe Higgins, criticised the £20 million grant to Croke Park. He told the seminar the money would have been better spent on football clubs in local deprived communities. He also criticised the reduction in corporation tax.
He said the largest two banks would pay between £15 million and £20 million a year less as a result of the cut. "That amount of money could give a huge uplift to areas like Clondalkin or Blanchardstown in west Dublin," he said. At the time of the Dublin West by-election all the parties had expressed horror at the level of deprivation there, but now it had been forgotten again.