Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle and the Ceann Comhairle's office for giving me the opportunity of raising this matter. I am grateful for the presence of the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, to respond to my concerns, shared by many in the Cork region but particularly those representing the Cork city area. The Minister of State may be aware that the previous Minister at his Department visited this company, GN Resound, at the end of 2002. The Tánaiste launched an expansion of activities at the company to expand the range of manufacturing, the types of products and the types of jobs available at the plant.

While that was welcomed by those who wish to see the development of economic matters in the Cork region, it is disturbing to note that since then the company has decided to move its manufacturing operations to China. This is indicative of a trend in many manufacturing industries. The Minister of State may feel pleased with news pertinent to his constituency announced this week. While announcements of new jobs in the regions are always welcomed, the distribution of such jobs and the industries they are in is something of which we must take greater cognisance.

The Cork area is reliant on the pharmaceutical, chemical and biotechnology areas. The announcement in the Minister of State's constituency is a further example of this. The region has seen a sad deterioration in high-tech, electronic manufacturing in recent years. The technology park in which GN Resound is based, on Model Farm Road, Bishopstown, on the outskirts of the city, is a sad testament to how that aspect of industrial development is not working as well as it could. The technology park has a number of empty units due to similar decisions by companies involved in manufacturing, particularly electronics. Some closed their operations for economic reasons and some for the reasons announced by GN Resound, namely, that profitability could be better obtained in a country with different economic circumstances where the workforce is prepared to be paid less.

The Government must decide to what extent such decisions represent a trend. What other type of manufacturing industry are we prepared to see leave our shores in coming years because of the effect of globalisation? It is not acceptable for the Minister of State to reply that we have high employment in this country or that announcements have been made for the Cork region in the past few days.

We must offer an industrial development policy that is varied, for the sake of workers with different skills in this economy, but also because we cannot become over-reliant on any one industry in the event of that industry being subject to economic factors in the future. We are placing all eggs in one basket and this may cause difficulties later. For the people who will lose their jobs at this company in April, what the Minister of State is likely to state in his reply, concerning high employment and recent job announcements, does not cut ice.

Besides the fact that people have been put in a disadvantageous employment situation, the company's product, hearing aids, is no longer made in this country. This will have implications for imports if this situation is repeated in other industries. Trade will be affected as well as employment. I am interested in the comments of the Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in response to this.

See this speech in context