Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)

Once again I am disappointed that the Tánaiste is not in the House. This is a matter of grave importance to Limerick city and county overall. The fact that I, as a Deputy for Limerick city, am obliged to raise this matter in the Dáil, three weeks after Dell announced it was to close its manufacturing facility, with the loss of 1,900 jobs, is an absolute disgrace. The fact is that I am forced to do it as the Tánaiste came to Limerick only on 13 January, nearly a week after the Dell announcement was made.

Almost three weeks after the closure was announced, we still have no indication as to when the multi-agency task force will be put in place, or its configuration. One begins to believe the Government wants the Dell issue and the issue of unemployment in Limerick — with companies such as Banta which are directly linked to Dell — to slip off the pages of the national media, in the hope that it will disappear. It will not, because the local media have kept this top of the agenda. As a public representative, I will continue to keep it top of the agenda. This task force should have been set up long before these jobs went. I called on 4 November for such a task force to be established because there was large-scale unemployment in Limerick and a continuing overhang as regards the Dell manufacturing jobs. I wanted a proactive measure, but what one gets from this Government is not even reactive — it is crisis management, pure inertia. Here we find the people of Limerick are suffering. Some 450 of the 1,900 people working in Dell are due to lose their jobs at the end of April. Banta, a plant related to Dell where more than 700 people work, will shed jobs on a pro rata basis, likewise Kostal in west Limerick. What is this Government doing? What is the delay with this task force? Why has it not been announced? Why was it not in place to provide a contingency plan before these jobs went? I cannot understand why that was the case, unless due to bad management and a lack of understanding of how serious is this situation.

The Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coughlan, was in the House earlier today. I mentioned that I would raise this on the Adjournment tonight and I expected her to be here because that is her job. I mean no disrespect to the Minister of State, Deputy Kelleher, but this is of such magnitude in Limerick that it warrants direct ministerial intervention. I want to hear this task force announced tonight. I want to hear what it consists of, that it is a multi-agency task force including business interests. We want action. The time for talking is long over.

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