Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)

I thank the Minister of State. It is heartbreaking to see so many jobs being lost and we must work hard to retain as many of them as possible. I ask the Minister of State to act quickly on that. These are young people with young families who have mortgages and debts and are facing into a frightening scenario. Will the Minister of State consider appointing one person to co-ordinate the response? I ask for retraining to start now to allow people to move smoothly into new areas. I reiterate these are young people who are anxious to be retrained although they would prefer to stay in their own jobs. Preparation must start now. We cannot wait until people are walking out the doors. We must ensure now that the maximum number of people are kept in their jobs and that those who lose their jobs will be in a position to take up new jobs in areas in the economy where there is growth.

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