Results 5,481-5,500 of 16,057 for speaker:Mary Coughlan

Written Answers — Community Employment Schemes: Community Employment Schemes (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Community Employment (CE) is an active labour market programme designed to provide eligible long term unemployed people and other disadvantaged persons with an opportunity to engage in useful work within their communities on a fixed term basis. CE helps unemployed people to re-enter the active workforce by breaking their experience of unemployment through a return to a work routine and to...

Written Answers — FÁS Training Programmes: FÁS Training Programmes (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: In the Supplementary Budget of 7 April last I announced a number of specific activation measures including a pilot scheme for short-term workers, which will provide training and income support to 277 workers considered to be in vulnerable employment. This will represent a significant new approach to supporting people in vulnerable employment. Under this training programme workers who are on...

Written Answers — State Agencies: State Agencies (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Day to day decisions in relation to the funding of individual Skillnets networks are a matter for the Board of Skillnets.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: I propose to take all of these questions together. I have noted with serious concern yesterday's announcement by SR Technics regarding the proposed sale of certain assets on their facility in Dublin airport. I have had extensive contacts with SR Technics over the past number of months and am extremely disappointed at this development. The firm has indicated that the bids received for its...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Far from throwing in the towel, we have re-engaged with the unsuccessful bidders and any other potential and interested parties, one of whom I will meet this evening when the House rises. We will work with these bidders to see if they continue to have an interest in starting an APU and-or landing gear maintenance shop over and above the existing line maintenance operation that is part of the...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: It is now opportune to tell the House what has been happening for some time, contrary to the remarks made by the Opposition. I met SR Technics local management in Zurich on 11 November. It indicated to me that it had a business proposal for which it sought support. I met the Irish management over Christmas. We worked through a business plan with the company and IDA Ireland. We put...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: It is very important to say that all the bids were to be based on the long-term commercial viability and sustainability of the company. If we cobbled together something that would sort out Dublin Airport and it fell on its face in six months, it would be a retrograde step for the businesspeople, workers and taxpayer. All the bidders were aware of the process. The process was being...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: No.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: I referred to the Irish bids.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Within the package of the overall 30.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: It is important to clear up a number of misapprehensions and misnomers. All of us, including the Deputies opposite, who are local to the area in question, knew that, in November 2007 when Aer Lingus lost the contract and it went to tender, there would be grave implications for SR Technics. It was on that basis that everybody here did their utmost to ensure the contracts became available as...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Arising from that, everyone knew in 2007 that there would be challenges for the company. On that basis the local management-----

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Neither I nor the State is a shareholder in SR Technics.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: We all knew this-----

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: I am not making an allegation at all.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: I am clarifying what has happened.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: That is the entire objective. Saying that we were not aware of matters or did not do what needed to be done is factually incorrect. Local management expressed grave concerns about the viability of SR Technics on the basis of costs and contracts. It was on that basis that we worked very closely with local management.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: Yes. We worked with and supported it and indicated categorically that we would financially support research and development and training. It is therefore wrong to claim the State did not intervene and support SR Technics and its local management. The recovery proposal was sent to Zurich and not accepted by the company. The company indicated to me on 11 February what would happen and, as...

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: -----the financial wherewithal would be given.

Job Losses. (14 May 2009)

Mary Coughlan: I am trying to offer advice and clarify the process. There are insinuations across the House that the Government was not prepared to give financial assistance to SR Technics. That is factually incorrect. We offered assistance in a package throughout the local management recovery project. We offered assistance to the successful bidders in the normal context in which we can offer support...