Michael Colreavy (Sligo-North Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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Question 10: To ask the Minister for Jobs; Enterprise and Innovation the basis on which Industrial Development Agency Ireland engaged with the management of Aviva; his views that it is unprecedented that the IDA would engage with a company before it's staff were even notified of any threat to their jobs. [28873/11]

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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IDA Ireland engages with Aviva both here in Ireland and at its corporate headquarters in the UK to understand the company's strategy and business development needs and to win investment and jobs from the company for Ireland. The IDA regularly engages with companies that may be contemplating restructuring in order to help protect employment. This is the primary basis for the IDA's engagement with all international companies and it is an approach that has served this country well for more than 40 years.

Aviva is undertaking a review of its operations in response to a significant reduction in demand for insurance and pensions products. Industry figures show significant drops in both home insurance business and pension and life assurance business, which has greatly affected Aviva's operations. The fall in the Irish market has led to the present restructuring review, which is being led by the company's European management. This is against the background of a reduction in staff numbers in the UK from 33,000 to 20,000, with the company's global workforce dropping from 56,000 to 36,000.

I met Aviva's CEO for worldwide operations and its European director, as well as the CEO of Aviva Ireland, as part of an ongoing process. I expressed the concern of the Government about the impact on employment and urged them to seek solutions that minimised the impact on jobs. I also offered them the support of the agencies of my Department. The company briefed me on the discussions that have been taking place. It remains committed to the Irish market. The representatives reiterated that no final decisions had yet been arrived at.

I assure the House that the IDA's central role has always been to anticipate and understand the needs of businesses that have invested here, seeking wherever possible to prevent job losses where they might occur.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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I understand the importance of the IDA engaging with the businesses themselves. If it was not, we would be here holding the Government to account. However, speaking to unions and workers' representatives, I have heard that many of them feel very much left in the dark in this whole process. They consider it strange that they were not told about the issues that would affect them, while the IDA was. Would the Minister not agree that since it is the future of the workers that is at stake, they should have been told before the IDA became involved? Also, the workers themselves could well be part of the solution to the problems that are affecting Aviva.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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They are different relationships. The IDA is an investment agency of the State which seeks to work with companies to anticipate challenges they might meet and deal with them through updating of skills, research and development investment and other means of assistance that might strengthen them. It is routine for the IDA to make contact with companies and, where the possibility of restructuring comes to its attention, it will engage intensively with the company concerned. It is not for the IDA to seek to inform workers of impending changes, that is not its role. I understand the anxieties of workers in this situation but the issue of the company's communication with its workforce is different from the IDA's work with the company, which is ongoing and seeks to anticipate and, where possible, pre-empt changes. They are two different issues and the IDA is acting entirely appropriately. However, I appreciate the concerns of workers and I hope this review will serve to end their uncertainty as quickly as possible and allow them to contribute to a resolution.

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Sinn Fein)
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If the situation at Aviva goes wrong, it will mean job losses not only in Dublin but also in Cork and Galway. When one takes into account workers' families, thousands of individuals will be directly affected by these job losses. In effect, some €38 million will be taken out of the economy and the Government will have to spend an additional €20 million on social welfare supports. It is akin to the TalkTalk situation but in slow motion. The Government must take the opportunity to engage proactively with the company in order that the necessary changes can be made and these jobs retained.

Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I assure the Deputy we are doing everything we can. As I indicated in my reply, Aviva has been restructuring its operations in the United Kingdom and Europe. In other words, the proposals regarding its Irish operations are part of a broader trend. There has been a huge collapse in the company's business in the Irish market and a review is now in train. The company is seeking to come to terms with the difficult trading conditions that pertain in this country.

The IDA will support the company it any way it can but one must bear in mind that the IDA's chief remit relates to new opportunities, particularly those orientated towards export markets. For companies trading within the domestic economy, there is limited support available from the development agencies. We can support only certain types of activities and opportunities, and those are the ones the IDA will seek to influence.