Ms Anderson: North West's unemployment rates must be addressed as a matter of urgency.

I've noticed a lot of talking and not a lot of action recently. Partly to justify the existance of Invest NI and jolly up lots of executive talk.

The harsh and brutal fact remains that the North West is an employment black hole, regardless of how much MLA's currently shout and gain press about it, there's not a lot changing. This market correction is resetting a lot of the last ten years. Investment in IT, finance and communication is all very well but it has little impact the real people who are claiming. The folk who fell foul to the construction industry vanishing from beneath them.

A good case in point was that Seagate wasn't about technology for Limavady, it was really production. The manufacturing of a product to sell. Once demand fell, Seagate left. Simple economics. The Limavady fallback on construction went to the wall at the same time, it was a double whammy.

Until sales in goods and services pick up then, obviously, demand is down, therefore we don't need employers to offer services we don't really want. The executive is so hellbent on getting investment from the US on high tech that I am really wondering where this is all going to go. This is a long timescale project, Kelvin won't kick in for a couple of years, then you need business to set up in Derry. That could be at least five years. What does that solve in the immediate, very little. How does Project Kelvin, US investment, trade trips and the rest of it serve the man and woman who are at the point of losing their home over lack of demand. Well it doesn't mean a thing to them from where I am sitting.

The man on the street is worried as hell right now - and this time I don't think a nice American can help us. Invest NI seems to spend a lot of time chasing foreign investment by investing in the foreign companies (ie. giving them money) as an incentive to come to Northern Ireland. The US is as much on it's backside as we are, where does £30million suddenly come from.

We need to help each other, have some ideas on what can be done now, not in five years time.

Phew: so what can be done?

Two things: local level support and government support.

i) Social investing, we invest in each other, help each other out the best way we can. Doesn't have to be money right now, though that would be included as well. As it stands the guys in suits are just as jumpy as the rest of us. If you have an idea then talk it through with a few folk, get some sounding boards and get some feedback. Find out what Limavady really needs...

ii) Decentralise the Start A Business Programme and put the money in the hands of the local agencies. Break down the barriers to starting a business, and put back a decent grant of cash available to those who really try to start a profitable venture. I don't care if it's an eBay business or selling flowers or herbs or whatnot. It starts small and it starts local. Roe Valley Enterprises need to make their faces more known in the community.