Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour)

With the indulgence of the Ceann Comhairle I would like to share time with Deputy Shortall. Last Thursday morning the 1,135 workers at SR Technics were given the devastating news of the closure of the company's operation at Dublin Airport. Mr. Bernd Kessler, the chief executive of SR Technics, blamed the loss of major customers at the Dublin Airport facility, the downturn in the aviation business due to the recession and the so-called high cost base of the operation. Mr. Kessler said that the closure came after an in-depth review of all lines of business across the SR group.

The news is a shocking body blow to Swords and the whole north side of Dublin, west Dublin and much of east Leinster, including Meath and Kildare. For the 1,135 workers and their families the loss of their livelihoods is a cruel blow at the worst of economic times. Many of the families concerned had several family members involved and much of the workforce had vast aviation engineering experience going back to their days in Aer Lingus, Team Aer Lingus and FLS. For all of them, an SR Technics closure would be a dreadful tragedy. When I repeatedly tried to raise the matter last Thursday before being asked to leave the House by the Ceann Comhairle, I noted the major negative impact of the decision on thousands of other workers in the SR supply chain and on their families.

The first major question which arises since Thursday is why nothing was done to prevent this disaster by Bernd Kessler of SR Technics of Zurich and the majority Middle Eastern owners, Mubadala Development, Dubai Aerospace Enterprise and Istithmar. When distinguished journalists were asking questions about the future of SR Technics six months ago, why was there no information or consultation with workers by Mr. Kessler and his colleagues? Over recent months, why were there not intensive discussions with the workforce and indeed all airport stakeholders to find a way forward?

A second, even more important question, arises. Last Friday and Saturday, I met many members of the SR workforce in my constituency. The overwhelming impression they gave me is that SR Technics should not be closing and that every effort should be made to rescue the company as a going concern. The workers detailed their excellent engineering and economic performance from Team Aer Lingus through the FLS period up to the present. Their renowned expertise in aircraft overhaul, the landing gear division, the auxiliary powers unit, line maintenance and the aircraft garage was recognised throughout the world. Critically, they believe that costs in Dublin were always sustainable but that their Zurich headquarters inflated charges to present the Dublin operation as unviable.

The last SR Technics Holdings annual report seems strongly to support the workers' case. The loss of the Aer Lingus contracts was a direct result of privatisation, which the Labour Party fiercely opposed, but it is also striking that there are ongoing problems with the Aer Lingus French contracts and that Gulf Air tried unsuccessfully to persuade SR Technics to keep the Gulf Air contract in Dublin. It is also alleged that many other airline contracts were deliberately diverted from Dublin. There is a profound suspicion that SR Technics Dublin is being closed to take capacity out of the air maintenance market and to destroy competition for the Zurich and Middle East facilities of SR Technics and its owners.

As I have told the Taoiseach over the past three days in the Dáil, his performance and that of the Tánaiste, IDA Ireland and the other State agencies involved has been appalling in the SR Technics matter. Nothing seems to have been done over many months to protect the 1,200 jobs. Once more we had a last minute meeting between the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coughlan, and an endangered company, which achieved nothing as usual.

A closure cannot be countenanced by the Irish State and aviation interests. If a sale, a management buy-out or a management worker partnership can be developed to run SR Technics as a going concern, what assistance can the Minister, Dublin Airport stakeholders and job creation agencies offer to any rescue plan?

We are putting €7 billion into insolvent banks but letting jobs in other sectors, including the critical aviation sector, evaporate. Let us start the jobs fightback by retaining the 1,200 jobs in aviation maintenance at Dublin Airport.

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