I [693] must first say that I deplore the very low standard of debate which is creeping into this confidence motion. When I think of the history of The Workers' Party and how they were born into Irish politics it ill-behoves them to make the statements and allegations which they have freely made both inside and outside the House, with friends in different areas of responsibility--

People should declare their political allegiance in every area of Irish life. The information which is regularly given to The Workers' Party seeks to undermine the institutions of this State. They are prepared to do that on a regular basis.

I note in particular the contribution by Deputy Rabbitte. We are debating a motion of confidence in this [694] Government who have provided good government over the past two and a half years. During his contribution to this debate Deputy Rabbitte never put forward any proposals for an alternative government to that in office now. He did not put forward any proposals in relation to the serious level of unemployment, which the Government want to resolve as a matter of priority. Does the Deputy really think that the contribution he has made in this House today - digging up papers going back to 1970 and 1974 will contribute to a reduction in the level of unemployment or the creation of jobs? The main purpose of the innuendo and the slurs they have cast over the past number of months is simply to destabilise the Government, bring them down, cause a general election and create a situation where The Workers' Party will be in a position to influence the composition of the next Government.
We know their links with Ceausescu in Romania, with eastern Europe and the Official IRA. We are still not satisfied that they did not know where the guns were hidden. They know that the guns were never handed up by the Official IRA. You were a member of the Official IRA. Let us be clear about it. Let them purge their contempt.

Deputy Proinsias De [696] Rossa is very sensitive so far as his background is concerned. However, he is not as concerned about throwing out allegations in relation to the Minister for Justice and the Taoiseach as he is about any possible allegations in relation to his involvement with different organisations in the past. He is very sensitive and I am rather surprised at his sensitivity.

I want to get back to the main purpose of this debate. I would appreciate if every Member of the House concentrated on the main issue of the economy which is before us and desist from making allegations across the House, which has been happening for the past two days. The allegations being made give rise to counter-allegations but they are not in the national interest. This House should concentrate on its main function, the introduction of legislation [697] to alleviate the problems facing the country.

It is also up to The Workers' Party to refute the allegations made on the "Today Tonight" programme in relation to the illegal printing of Irish money. All those allegations were made on RTE and as far as I know they were never refuted. They should refute those allegations while they are at it. I am sure it would be appropriate for them to refute those allegations in another forum, on radio or television.
I am very pleased, as Minister for Trade and Marketing, to have this opportunity to speak in support of the motion before the House. Before dealing with my specific area of responsibility, namely Ireland's marketing and export performance in recent years and the prospects for the future, it is worth reiterating some facts about the performance of this Government and its predecessor since 1987. I will also deal with how the marketing and export promotion policy of both Governments has played a vital role in the recovery which has taken place in the economy since 1987.
When Fianna Fil came to power in 1987 we found the country in the most perilous state. The national debt had been doubled over the term of office of the previous Government. The budget deficit at over 8 per cent of GNP was at the highest level ever. Income taxes were at a level where many considered it not worth their while to earn an income. Investment in the economy was non-existent. Employment had fallen by over 60,000 during the previous Government's reign. Confidence was at an all time low. [698] Indeed, it would probably be truer to say that despair was at an all-time high. This was the mess the incoming Government were faced with in 1987. To many it appeared a hopeless case.
Immediately on taking power in 1987 we set about rectifying this disastrous situation. We faced up to the tough decisions which had to be taken. I must place on record the responsible attitude of Deputy Dukes and the Fine Gael Party at the time. Unfortunately, he suffered the consequences of his responsibility when he was removed and replaced by Deputy Bruton as Leader of the party.

Nevertheless, the record will show that Deputy Dukes played a very important role in supporting the policies pursued by our Government at that time; many of us suffered electorally in 1989 as a result of the action taken in the national interest. We were prepared to stand up and make very tough decisions. We should place on record our appreciation to the person who was Taoiseach then, is Taoiseach now and the Taoiseach of the future, for his commitment and dedication to this policy.

By 1990 the despair which had existed had been changed to a new confidence. This confidence was well founded. The basic economic indicators showed just how successful this Government and the previous one had been in the transformation of the economy.
The current budget deficit had been cut from the record level of 8.3 per cent of GNP to just 2 per cent by 1990. The economy had been transformed from one of stagnation to positive growth averaging 4.5 per cent per annum. The balance of payments moved into surplus aided by record export levels and trade surpluses and Ireland became an attractive location for investment. We have one of the lowest inflation rates in world. [699] Personal tax rates fell from 58 per cent to 52 per cent at the higher band and the standard rate fell from 35 per cent to 29 per cent, a major achievement in a short number of years. We built a strong economy which was crucial to weather the effects of the latest severe international recession; a recession which of course has impacted on us just as it has on even the world's strongest economies.

Had we not been successful in transforming our economy since 1987 we can only speculate on the disaster which would now be facing us in the light of current international difficulties.

I would like to turn now to my own area of responsibility, namely, trade and marketing and more specifically export performance. Since 1987, this Government and their predecessor can be justly proud of their record in promoting Irish exports. We have had continuing trade surpluses every year. Overall export growth and the export performance of our indigenous exporters have been most impressive even in the face of extremely harsh worldwide economic conditions.
Irish export performance has still been most impressive in 1991, despite the level of international recession, war in the Gulf and general economic uncertainty. Up to the end of July, exports showed a remarkably solid performance. Exports in value terms for the first seven months of the year amounted to 8.6 billion, almost at parity with their 1990 levels. This performance is characterised by steady growth in the indigenous sectors such as textiles, furniture, clothing and footwear. However, the international [700] recession has had a particularly adverse affect on exports of computer related equipment with exports in this sector down by some 17 per cent.
The real success of exports for the first half of 1991 lies in the volume increase, with overseas sales of manufactured goods up to 7.6 per cent over the same period last year. When one considers that this volume increase was achieved against a disimproving world trading climate, the export performance so far this year is to be commended. Even though downward price pressures in the international marketplace are causing our export values to be static, given the strong volume growth which we are experiencing, I am confident that 1991 will see an increase in export values from 14.3 billion last year to at least 14.8 billion in 1991, truly a great performance for our country, truly a great performance for the Government, truly a great performance for our manufacturers and our exporters.
Of particular importance is the success of our indigenous exporters. Preliminary surveys by An Bord Trchtla - the Irish Trade Board - indicate that their 1,200 indigenous companies are showing particularly strong growth in their exports in 1991. The sectors performing best are clothing, footwear, textiles and added value food products. This performance continues a trend which can be traced back to 1987. Over the three years from 1987 to 1990, indigenous exports increased by 44 per cent in value while total exports increased by 33 per cent. Before 1987, indigenous export growth had consistently trailed that of overall exports with an average annual growth of just 5 per cent. Since 1987, indigenous exports have outpaced overall export growth at an average of 13 per cent growth per annum.
The ultimate objective of all trade and marketing policy is employment creation. I am confident that the efforts made to develop the marketing capabilities of our firms is now bearing fruit and will continue to do so. I would like to give a practical example of a company which has benefited from yet another [701] Government inspired scheme to assist exports, namely the special trading house scheme.
In a letter to my office recently, a manufacturer explained how his company increased production through the use of a trading house to do his overseas marketing. Prior to dealing with the trading house, export sales for the company were zero. After making arrangements with the trading house, exports now account for 80 per cent of sales. Employment in the company has increased from 13 to 48 people. This is an example of how export led growth can impact on employment and how crucial exports are to our economy overall. We will continue to develop policies which produce results such as these.
In the midst of all these Government efforts and the individual efforts of firms we must never ignore the extent to which our destinies are controlled by outside factors. There is no point in pretending that we are immune from economic conditions which prevail in the rest of the world. The economies of our major trading partners have experienced severe recession. Although some are showing signs of re-emerging, many are still clouded by enormous difficulties. In the US, for example, the weakness of the banking system is still affecting confidence; efforts by the countries of Central and Eastern Europe are being hindered by old technology, the lack of an infrastructure to support a market economy and lack of entrepreneurial spirit. A recent estimate by UNCTAD predicts that aggregate world growth is likely to advance by less than 1 per cent in 1991 compared with almost 2 per cent in 1990. The difficulties of trading in a tight economic situation such as this with intensified competition as firms compete for market share must always be recognised.
There are two factors in particular which have contributed to our export success in the past and which will undoubtedly continue to contribute in the future. The first is the Government's achievement in creating a favourable business environment which I have already outlined. The second element concerns the [702] specific supports which the Government put in place for our exporters over those years to help them build market share. The efficiency and effectiveness of these supports are continuously under review and are adjusted to suit the particular demands of our exporters from time to time. What length of time remains for me?

I would like now to concentrate on the substantial efforts which went into developing marketing programmes to assist Irish business prepare for the threats and opportunities of the Single European Market.
There has been general agreement in this country that, historically, too high a proportion of State expenditure on industrial development has gone towards investment in equipment and fixed assets. It is acknowledged that the balance needed to be shifted towards "softer assets" and particularly towards areas of perceived weakness like marketing, management development and technology. This policy was adopted in the White Paper on Industry Policy in 1984 and the two reviews of that policy which have been published, the last one in December 1990, bear out that a significant shift within the industry budget from support of fixed assets to non-fixed assets has taken place.
We are quite confident we can meet the challenges and the opportunities which will present themselves in the Single Market. Indeed the Government during the Presidency of the EC in the first six months of 1990 played a very significant role in ensuring we had much greater opportunities in the Single European Market after 1992. Generally speaking this debate which is taking place is certainly unhelpful to the economic wellbeing of our country. It is in the national interest that Ministers, Ministers [703] of State and Members of this House should assist the business community in every way possible to develop markets and increase production. I make no apologies for working with industries throughout the country to assist them in developing and in increasing employment. Nothing said in this debate will deter me from my responsibility as a Minister. I will work with companies in my constituency and beyond to obtain new markets at home and abroad. In pursuit of that I will be delighted to continue my contacts at all levels.
As a Member of this House I am concerned about media coverage of events over the last few weeks. I favour, without question, a free media, subject only to the prevailing laws of libel and whatever constraints the Dil may decide to impose in relation, for instance, to incitement to hatred or violence. In fact, one of the distinguishing features of free societies is a media which is free to report and comment on all the issues. The media has a big contribution to make to the maintenace of democracy and, of course, one of the hall-marks of an anti-democratic society is a media which is muzzled.
That said, I would like to take a look at another quality which the media must possess - a sense of responsibility. As far as I am concerned, freedom and responsibility go hand in hand.
Because the media business is so competitive, it is natural that each newspaper or radio station or whatever should try to make its product as attractive as possible. Sometimes, this may result in over-simplification of complex issues, but it is to be expected that the media will try to make these issues as stimulating and attractive as possible, without distorting the facts. There has to be a middle way and, usually, the media get it right.
However, in recent weeks, I have been disappointed to see a lowering of standards in some of the media in the headlong pursuit of better and more sensational stories. Some media people have lost sight of certain things which are essential if they are to carry out their jobs in a professional and objective manner. [704] A particularly worrying development has been the presumption of guilt by association which has crept into some coverage.
We should all be very grateful to a vigilant media which exposes and reports on corruption wherever it exists. I do not want dirt to be swept under the carpet. People and institutions, up to the highest level, should be subject to scrutiny and, if they do not measure up, we should know about it. In uncovering stories which, at the very least, raise genuine concerns, the media performs a very useful task and is to be complimented. However, not all coverage in recent weeks has been fair and reasonable and some of it has crossed that line into the presumption of guilt, or certainly, leading the reader/listener/viewer to think that some person or organisation is guilty, in advance of any proven facts, particularly, guilty by association.
Also, calling for some sense of national responsibility on the media's part is not unreasonable. The media is part of Irish society and should think carefully about damage which it can inflict on the national economy.
For instance, it might be very tempting to run a sensationalised story on a particular industry, which, by creating seeds of doubt about that industry could lead to lost export orders and, ultimately, lost jobs. That is why I am deeply concerned about coverage in recent weeks. There is an onus on the media not to rush prematurely into print with such a story; it should be thoroughly checked out beforehand.
I know that, by saying this, there will be those who will accuse me of calling for a whitewash approach to journalism, that is that anything, true or false, which damages the country's image should not be made public. I am emphatically not saying that.
If something or somebody deserves to be exposed, so be it. We do not want companies for instance who damage our efforts to establish a quality image for Irish industry and its exports.
However, when there are rumours and unsupported allegations circulating, it is up to media editors to think very carefully [705] about the presentation of a story before running it. They should give consideration to the potential for causing commercial damage to a company or an industry or, indeed, to the national image.
It is about time that the media established a press council to ensure that those who would be affected by unproved stories have some remedy without going to the courts. I particularly resented articles by Conor Cruise O'Brien in the Irish Independent which were most offensive to the Taoiseach. The allegations were scurrilous. Dr. Cruise O'Brien talked about people gathering at the crossroads waiting for the grave to be dug and about someone waiting to plunge the knife or the spear into the Taoiseach. That was incitement to hatred by a vicious commentator, a former Member of this House. It reached the lowest standards of any newspaper or publication here. The editor and the proprietors of the Irish Independent should ensure that that type of approach is not repeated. It is an embarrassment and it is an insult to the elected leader of this country. I very much resent that sort of publication and I appeal to the media to set up a self regulatory press council so that people will have a chance to at least put their case. That would do the media a good deal of good.

