Michael Harty (Clare, Independent) | Oireachtas source

It has taken the Minister of State two and a half minutes to tell me that there is no new buyer for the company. Three years after the company announced the plant's closure with the loss of 240 jobs - and also the loss of the subcontractor jobs that went into supplying services to the plan - the Minister of State is telling me there is still no buyer. A replacement is critical for the people of Clarecastle. The closure of Roche sent shockwaves through the community. The Minister of State and previous Ministers in the Department committed to finding a buyer for the plant, which was the subject of major investment over the years. Millions of euro went into developing the plant but the Minister of State is telling me that, over a three-year period, a buyer could not be found for it. If we are still looking for a buyer after three years, the likelihood of finding one is diminishing by the day.

The Minister of State informed me of the other jobs that were created in Clare. In this case, however, a fundamental piece of industrial infrastructure in Clarecastle, at which production will cease in 2019, is going to be left lying vacant. We need to get a replacement industry into the plant.

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