Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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I am pleased to have an opportunity to raise this important matter in the House tonight. I have raised the long-term future of Dell in Limerick on a number of occasions since the closure of company's manufacturing plant there was announced. Dell is a great employer in Limerick. It continues to employ more than 1,000 people in high-end manufacturing there. The 1,900 jobs that will soon have been lost at the Dell manufacturing plant in Limerick are, in effect, being moved to the Dell plant in Lodz. It appears that the ownership of the plant in Poland is to transfer to Foxconn, a large global company that is taking over the manufacture of computers for Dell. My understanding is that Dell will become a customer of Foxconn's manufacturing services in Poland. I would like the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to confirm that transfer of the ownership of the Polish plant to Foxconn will not have negative or adverse implications on the sustainability of the Dell plant in Limerick. There is a great relationship between the plants in Limerick and Lodz.

We need to be assured that Dell has a viable future in Limerick and that the 1,000 remaining jobs will be preserved. It is extremely important for the Tánaiste to confirm that funding under the European globalisation fund will be made available to the 2,500 workers - I refer to Dell workers and their counterparts in related companies like Banta and Flextronics, who have been made redundant as a result of the closure of the Dell manufacturing plant in Limerick. Further, I would like the Tánaiste to confirm that the mid-west region, which includes Limerick, will become IDA Ireland's priority region as it tries to attract foreign direct investment. IDA Ireland has not brought any foreign direct investment into Limerick since Dell announced the closure of the manufacturing plant in early January of this year. In that time, Cork has get 850 IDA Ireland-backed jobs and Galway has got 164 such jobs. Although Limerick has had a higher rate of loss of foreign direct investment jobs than anywhere else in the country, not a single job has been delivered to Limerick by IDA Ireland this year. In the run-up to the Dell announcement, I called for a jobs task force to be established. IDA Ireland took no part in the task force even though it was established as a direct result of the loss of IDA Ireland jobs.

It is critical for the Tánaiste to confirm that she has made direct contact with Dell to ascertain whether the Limerick plant has a sustainable future. Can she say whether the 1,000 remaining jobs will be retained? Will the Government support Dell so that it can grow in Limerick, as Apple did in Cork, by means of the creation and development of high-end value jobs? Can the Tánaiste confirm when the €23 million of vital funding under the European globalisation fund will come on stream, in a practical way, in Limerick and the mid-west? People are entitled to benefit from the funding, €15 million of which will come from the EU and €8 million of which will come from the Government. They have been waiting for it for many months. It will enable people who have lost manufacturing jobs in Dell and related companies, through no fault of their own, to get on their lives by finding jobs, becoming self-employed or getting properly retrained. Further, it is extremely important for the Tánaiste to clarify whether she will discuss with the European Commission the grant of €54.5 million that was given by the Polish Government to Dell to encourage it to establish its Lodz plant. The ownership of the plant in question has been transferred, in effect, from Dell to the Foxconn enterprise. Was the European Commission aware at the time of the possibility of Dell not remaining in Poland? If that had been known, some of the manufacturing plant in Limerick might still be functioning and vitally needed jobs might have been retained in the region. I want my questions to be answered so that we can ensure that the 1,000 remaining jobs at the Dell facility in Limerick have a sustainable future.

Martin Mansergh (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Deputy for raising this matter on the Adjournment. I will reply on behalf of the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. The matter is of some interest in west Tipperary, where a number of Dell employees live. I am advised that IDA Ireland is aware of recent developments at the Dell plant in Poland. IDA Ireland has been in constant contact with Dell at local and corporate levels. I understand that the planned transfer and alignment of its Lodz manufacturing operation to Foxconn Technology Group is in line with Dell's strategic plan. The company has said that this announcement will not affect any of the 2,000 remaining Dell employees in Ireland. Dell's employees in Limerick and Dublin are engaged in a wide range of high-end functions. They support the company's global operations, particularly in its Europe, Middle East and Africa area. IDA Ireland's strategy for the mid-west region, which includes Limerick, involves facilitating the transition to a knowledge economy, by winning new foreign direct investment in innovation-driven, high-value and high-skill sectors; working with the existing company base to expand its presence, by increasing the number and scale of functions being carried out and adding further strategic functions; to promote balanced regional development; to provide modern properties with supporting infrastructure; and to work with local authorities and other partners to influence the creation of the right infrastructural environment in which new foreign direct investment can be won throughout the region.

Limerick's foreign direct investment base is mainly concentrated in the city environs of the national technology park and in Raheen. According to the Forfás employment survey of November 2008, 40 companies with State-supported foreign direct investment were employing 8,601 people in permanent jobs, and a further 595 in temporary and contract employment, at the date of the survey. Since then, however, it has been announced that over 2,500 job cuts, including approximately 2,000 in Dell, will be implemented by the end of 2009. The magnitude of the job losses, and the ongoing fallout from the Dell decision, led to the establishment by the Tánaiste of a mid-west task force to address the future development of the mid-west region with a particular emphasis on supporting sustainable employment. The investment projects that IDA Ireland is seeking to attract to Limerick are different from those of the past. IDA Ireland is relying principally on the skills of the people and the strong business and educational infrastructure to attract investment to the county. IDA Ireland's strategy is to re-position the region as a hotspot for knowledge-based industry, while focusing on marketing Limerick as a key location for investment by building on the strengths that are already evident in the county. To support this strategy, IDA Ireland works closely with educational institutions in the region to develop the skill sets necessary to attract high value-added employment to the county. IDA Ireland is working closely with the existing base of employers to encourage additional investment, particularly in activities such as research and development, customer support and back office functions. IDA Ireland is working closely with Shannon Development to provide suitable property solutions for potential investors to the county. I suggest that Deputy O'Donnell should submit parliamentary questions to the Tánaiste if he feels that some of his queries were not answered in my reply.

Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick East, Fine Gael)
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I suggest that the Minister of State might to refer my questions to the Tánaiste, and she might reply to them.