Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Horgan for attending this meeting and making himself available. I appreciate the initial presentation that has been given. I acknowledge Mr. Horgan's comments about the history of Bord na Móna and its place as a social and economic driver in this country, especially in the midlands. Before this week, Bord na Móna provided approximately 800 full-time and part-time jobs in my constituency. Mr. Horgan said he sees his role as being that of a chairperson, first and foremost. He said he will allow debate to take place and ensure that a means of making decisions is in place. Given that he has been on the board since April, I am sure he has already formulated many opinions. I assume he has ideas about how Bord na Móna might succeed. He will have formed a view on how the board might direct the chief executive and the staff to drag the company back to its former greatness. It is against that background that I would like to ask some questions and seek some opinions. I am interested in the ideas that Mr. Horgan might bring to the fore as chairperson of the board as he seeks to maximise the company's potential and profits. Ultimately, his goal must be to maintain the Bord na Móna jobs in the regions.

It was widely known prior to this week's announcement that morale is not excessively high among the staff of Bord na Móna. Does Mr. Horgan have an opinion on that? Is he aware that unions at the company have circulated a motion of no confidence in the chief executive, to be taken by the board? That development has been brought to my attention. It is an indication that things have reached a fresh low despite the recent announcements. Mr. Horgan mentioned that the company has approximately 1,800 staff throughout the country, across core and non-core facets of its operations. This week's announcement affected 5% of that workforce. As chairman designate of Bord na Móna, does Mr. Horgan feel that restructuring of this nature is fair and proportionate? I remind the committee that 105 temporary staff are being let go and a further 90 staff, all of whom have been working in core sectors of the company, are being placed on short time. Perhaps this measure would be seen as fairer and more proportionate if it involved some other means of bringing the wider workforce into the picture.

At a meeting on 6 September last, the board was informed that savings of approximately €18 million were needed following the poor harvest this year and the not-so-great harvests of previous years. We would like to know what sort of stockpiling was carried out in previous years. Was it sufficient to accommodate the needs of customers this winter and into next year? I understand that a figure of €24 million was mentioned at the meeting of 13 September even though the harvest had improved by 10% by that time. The required savings had increased by €6 million even though the an improvement on the expected harvest had materialised. Why, in that context, was there such a large expectation that staff would take a further hit?

The losses being incurred by non-core sectors of Bord na Móna in areas like waste management and wind energy, as opposed to its core peat production operations which remain profitable, appear to be dragging the company down. What steps have to be taken, in Mr. Horgan's opinion, to ensure there is a focus on the core activities of Bord na Móna? The company's asset management plan has yet to be published. Is the board contemplating the closure of workshops? If it is, where are those closures likely to happen? What will those workshops be replaced by? At what cost, in terms of funds and jobs, might all of this be done?

Over the years, Bord na Móna had prided itself on the quality of its workmanship and professionalism in trades such as fitters and electricians. Many people in the manufacturing sector throughout the country have been asking me about the noticeable fall-off in this regard. Huge expertise has been built up over time in the training sector. What role does Mr. Horgan envisage that this sector will have in the future? If it is the case that these workshops are to be thinned out to such an extent, is it not fair to assume the company will not take on the number of apprentices it has taken on in the past? If that is what will happen, I hope the board will try to find a means of collaborating with other providers of education in order to continue what has traditionally been done in this regard.

I will conclude by asking about the Government's policy involving the proposed sale of State assets. Does Mr. Horgan expect that Bord na Móna, or any parts of it, will be put up for sale in line with the Government's policy on the sale of State assets?