Tom Hayes (Tipperary South, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I was so interested in the health debate I forgot I was first to speak on the Adjournment. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle for this opportunity to raise this important issue of the loss of 140 jobs in Clonmel, County Tipperary, last week after a difficult period for Bulmers. I also ask what support has been given to Bulmers, what will be done for the workers involved, what other employment is planned for the town and the county and whether the IDA has any further developments to report.

The cost-cutting programme includes the shedding of 140 full-time staff or about one fifth of the workforce in Clonmel, County Tipperary. The company employs almost 900 staff worldwide, 600 of whom are based in Clonmel. Before the latest layoffs in the last two weeks, Clonmel drinks company Bulmers had confirmed that more than half of the temporary jobs losses of last July were to become permanent. Some 46 of the 70 temporary jobs losses announced by Bulmers in the summer are now permanent. This is on top of the 140 job losses that were announced last week.

Another disappointment that is going unexpressed is that the company was meant to be in the middle of a period of expansion. Certain Deputies and candidates in the constituency during the last general election announced that this year the company would employ over 700. Like the healthy economy the Government promised us, these jobs have gone belly-up. This is a serious situation for a town such as Clonmel with an indigenous industry such as Bulmers and I am concerned to see this in a company with the history in the constituency of Bulmers.

I hope the Minister will deliver some positive news on Bulmers. It has had a great impact on the economy of south Tipperary. Since it went public, C&C has prospered and I am concerned to see job losses at this rate. I thank the Minister for coming to the House and addressing this important issue. I hope he will deliver something positive.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank Deputy Tom Hayes for raising this matter. I am aware of the situation in Clonmel and am concerned about the job losses at the company. The company has experienced a reduction in sales in a key market in the United Kingdom, primarily due to the impact of bad weather during the summer and increased competition from its main competitors. The company's sales in the UK are significantly below target. The company considers that the redundancies are necessary to reduce its costs and bring them in line with a revised business plan devised to ensure the competitiveness of its brands. Governments and Ministers cannot be held responsible for market trends. I respect the company's decision, which is aimed to ensure the long-term viability of the company and to protect the remaining 460 jobs in Clonmel.

Employment in the company increased rapidly from 330 people in 2004 to 600 employees this year, a dramatic increase by any standards. As the Deputy said, the company was planning additional expansion but market trends have impacted on that plan. The company has had to rein in its ambitions, regroup and move forward. We wish the company ongoing success.

While I am conscious of the effect any job losses will have on the workers involved and their families as well as on the local community, I assure any people affected that the State agencies will give every support they can to develop new employment opportunities. Enterprise Ireland is in regular contact with the company and is discussing how the agency can be of assistance with its research and development programme. To date, Enterprise Ireland has approved almost €300,000 in funding under its research technology and innovation scheme for the company and the agency expects all of this funding to be drawn down. The agency will continue to work very closely with the company during this challenging period.

The role of FÁS is particularly important in assisting those people who will lose their jobs. The agency has been in contact with the company and has offered its full range of services to support the employees. I understand from FÁS that the company is currently reviewing the redundancy situation with its employees and their union representatives. The company will contact FÁS to avail of the services that have been outlined in initial discussions.

When job losses happen, the Government, through the State development agencies and other interested parties, adopts a co-ordinated approach in dealing with the situation. All work together in making the employees, who are initially the most affected and need immediate assistance, aware of the supports available to assist in finding new employment, starting their own businesses or participating in appropriate training programmes.

The strategy of IDA Ireland for Clonmel and south Tipperary is to progress the development of a knowledge economy so that they can compete both nationally and internationally for foreign direct investment. The agency also works with its existing client base to help them develop their businesses further.

A substantial programme of activity is under way with existing overseas companies in the region. The success of these activities is demonstrated by the presence of 11 IDA Ireland-supported companies in south Tipperary, employing approximately 2,500 people. In marketing south Tipperary for new foreign direct investment, the agency is focused on attracting overseas companies in the services and knowledge-based industries, including advanced manufacturing. Recent successes in attracting foreign direct investment include Cordis and Alza in Cashel.

Cordis is expected to be operational in the second quarter of 2008. The future development of the Ballingarrane estate in Clonmel, incorporating an IDA business park and the Tipperary institute, will be a key asset in the quest for further overseas investment in the county. The key industry sector for south Tipperary is life sciences. The largest employers are Abbott and Boston Scientific, followed by Merck Sharp & Dohme, Pinewood Laboratories and Clonmel Healthcare. Abbott and Boston Scientific are companies of world-class calibre and reputation and it is very good that south Tipperary has the presence across the board of household names in FDI. It is a very healthy situation from a foreign direct investment perspective. Interestingly in today's announcement of 170 jobs in Carlow, mention was made of how successful the Clonmel plant was and is for Merck Sharp & Dohme. This fact was significant in the decision to locate another plant in the Carlow area.

A significant number of Enterprise Ireland client companies in south Tipperary are actively developing their businesses. Since 2006, Enterprise Ireland has made payments of more than €1.5 million to its client companies in south Tipperary.

According to figures for October 2007, the number of people on the live register in Clonmel is 849, an increase of 16 people on a year earlier. However, the live register is not specifically designed to measure unemployment as it includes part-time, seasonal and casual workers. Unemployment is measured by the quarterly national household survey, and the latest figure issued on 15 November for the south-east region, which is for the third quarter of 2007, is 4.8%. This is a welcome reduction from the 5.8% recorded for the third quarter of 2006.

I am confident that the strategies and policies being pursued by the State development agencies in Clonmel will continue to support investment and job creation in the area. I want to reiterate that the State agencies will continue to work closely with each other, with local interests and with all the Deputies representing Tipperary South to facilitate an integrated approach to enterprise development in both Clonmel and south Tipperary.

Martin Ferris (Kerry North, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I have raised this issue to highlight the worsening situation in Tralee and the surrounding area with the loss of 44 jobs at the Denny plant. Just over a week ago the workers were told their jobs would be gone from 31 January 2008. It is not just those 44 jobs that will be lost. I am reliably informed that a further eight jobs in the office will follow. In addition, hauliers and part-time workers will lose their jobs. These losses need to be viewed with further Denny losses of 20 jobs in May and 25 jobs in June, resulting in the loss of almost 100 jobs in one small plant in Tralee. Denny is one of the longest-standing businesses in the town and is a very significant loss, not just to the workers but also to the wider community.

These losses come on top of job losses at other companies based in the town, including Glen Dimplex, Tralee Beef and Lamb, and Klopman in recent years. This has added to an already serious unemployment problem. There are now 1,300 people out of work in Tralee which has an unemployment rate of 14.2% — the second highest in the State for a town of its size. Apart from those who have no jobs, there is the growing problem of under-employment, casual employment and part-time employment, often at very low wages. There are almost a further 2,000 people in that position bringing the total signing on the live register to 3,286. That means that almost 40% of the total workforce in Tralee are either fully or partially unemployed. Where, it has to be asked, are the benefits of the Celtic tiger to the south west? They are certainly nowhere to be seen in the town of Tralee.

The unemployment rate in Tralee has hardly changed in the past 11 years. In 1996, unemployment in Tralee town was 15.3%. It is now14.2%, an improvement of a mere 1.1%. Tralee has not seen any benefit from the overall economic gains of recent years. Without doubt one of the key reasons has been the failure to promote the town properly as the centre for investment. On a number of occasions I have asked successive Ministers, including the present Minister for Health and Children when she was Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, to state how many companies have been targeted by IDA Ireland for Tralee. I was told it was a manufacturing and technology town. However, on each occasion the Ministers avoided the question. It is my understanding that IDA Ireland has been instructed not to go into the south west. When I met representatives of IDA Ireland, they told me they were told to promote the area within a 50-mile radius of Dublin where the infrastructure is suitable.

While Tralee has an educated workforce along with Kerry Technology Park and the Institute of Technology, it has not been exploited for the benefit of the people of the south west. Without a proactive approach by the Government towards addressing that disadvantage for Tralee and north Kerry, this will continue to be the case. North Kerry in general has suffered. Listowel has lost three businesses in recent years and it is now proposed to close the ESB facility in Tarbert. These losses, along with what is happening in Tralee, highlight the lack of commitment of successive Ministers to proactively create jobs in Kerry in general and Tralee in particular. I ask the Minister of State to consider the situation. Given that 14.2% of the workforce in the town is unemployed, it should be top of the Government's agenda to reverse that unemployment rate.

Mary Wallace (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The Kerry Group has indicated that it will shortly cut 50 jobs at its Henry Denny plant in Tralee. The Kerry Group took over the Denny plant in 1982. It ceased slaughtering pigs in the early 1990s and since then it has engaged in meat processing. I understand from the company that the reason for this move is that demand for the type of primary cuts that were traditionally manufactured at the Tralee plant has declined and therefore the operation there is no longer viable. Consumers have switched to a preference for convenience foods and ready meals. Nevertheless, 30 jobs will remain in place in Tralee where bacon curing will continue to be the main activity.

Decisions of this nature are entirely a matter for management of the company and we have no involvement in decisions regarding the location or nature of commercial activities. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food maintains a veterinary presence at the Denny plant for the purpose of monitoring compliance with hygiene legislation.

The Irish meat processing industry is in a robust state notwithstanding that this is a very competitive business. The sector has shown the degree of innovation and consumer focus needed for success in the global food market. The export of processed products, prepared meals, etc., is making a valuable contribution to export earnings. It is creating significant employment and, importantly, is adding value to our primary agricultural output.

Last week, the Minister, Deputy Coughlan, launched the 2007 edition of Quality Food Founded on Science, which features the projects funded under the food institutional research measure, FIRM. Investment in knowledge and innovation is critical to the continued success of the agrifood sector and the Government has steadily increased the funding available for research. We believe that the concerted efforts of the research community, the food industry and the State will position the sector to meet the ever-evolving demands of the international consumer.

The pig sector is an important element of the food processing industry. The main current concern for pig producers is the erosion of profit margins due to the very high cost of feeding stuffs. The Minister, Deputy Coughlan, has in recent times, worked with her EU colleagues, both at Council and bilaterally, to put in place steps aimed at improving the situation and ameliorating some of the difficulties being caused by the increased cost of inputs. These steps include a suspension of the obligation to set aside 10% of arable land. The European Commission is also examining ways of synchronising the authorisation process for genetically modified feedstuffs in the EU and the US to try to improve the efficiency of these arrangements.

We will continue to pursue appropriate measures aimed at addressing current income difficulties. A scheme of financial assistance for the private storage of pigmeat was put in place in recent weeks. This was adopted by the European Commission in response to a request from Ireland and some other member states. We have also impressed on the Commission the desirability of export refunds for fresh and frozen pigmeat. A proposal in this context will be discussed at this Thursday's meeting of the EU pigmeat management committee.

The question of compliance with legislation on the protection of the environment is an area of major importance for the future of the pig sector. It will have significant cost implications and will give rise to operational complexities for producers. We have established the intensive livestock group to help the pig and poultry sectors to find solutions to manure disposal problems arising from the nitrates regulations. The work of this group is continuing.

The case highlighted by Deputy Ferris relates to consumer affairs. Pigmeat features prominently in Bord Bia's programme of promotion on the home and export markets. I have asked the board to intensify its national pork and bacon promotion campaign and additional funding is being made available to that end. Bord Bia's quality assurance schemes help to maintain consumer confidence. The pigmeat scheme is well established and managed.

On exports, Bord Bia's marketing initiatives and overseas promotion drives relate, inter alia, to pigmeat. The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food maintains an extensive scheme of controls in respect of the hygienic production of pigmeat and the operational procedures which are required to underpin the certification of pigmeat for markets worldwide.

We are working with the Minister for Health and Children on the introduction of legislation to provide better information to consumers on the origin of pigmeat and other meats. The process of public consultation on the proposed regulations has been completed and the comments received are being examined. The draft legislation will be notified to the European Commission thereafter.

Other relevant support actions on the part of the Department include the extension of the farm waste management scheme to the pig sector, the development of the programme of financial assistance for the transition to welfare-friendly sow housing and the continuation of the programmes for the monitoring and control of animal diseases. I will continue to work closely with the food industry to develop and implement measures which will ensure that the Irish agri-food sector continues to make an important contribution to the national economy and export earnings.