Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

I listened to the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Parlon, say only yesterday that the decision taken by Greencore would undermine the position of the Minister. However, the Minister, Deputy Coughlan, said it would not undermine her position. The Government is in complete disarray on this issue. There is no question about it. I cannot understand how a company decides to close a plant that is making a profit of €10 million. Usually when there are redundancies of that nature, with 350 full-time and part-time jobs being lost, the company concerned has hit rock bottom and is losing money hand over fist. However, this is a company that has made a profit of €10 million from the Carlow plant.

We have assurances from the Minister, for what they are worth, that the farmers will have guarantees on price which will not change and that they may even gain from this situation. However, what are the assurances for more than 300 workers employed in Carlow, families who have worked there for years? These are people who will not get another job because many of them are in their 50s and older. People say the south east is thriving. Outside its north-eastern area, the south east is the least serviced region in the country as far as grant aid, jobs and everything else is concerned. People are not aware of this, but it is a fact. What is on offer for the people of Carlow and the 300 workers and their families dependent on the sugar plant is years on the dole.

This is as a result of the decision made by Greencore. The least it could have done was wait until the rail link was put in place before it carried out this act. However, it will not wait. The same assurances were given in Tuam where they talked about having the rail system in place but the rails were taken up. These is the type of assurance we are hearing tonight. The Government is in disarray and does not know where it is on this issue. The Progressive Democrats are saying one thing while Fianna Fáil is saying another. Fianna Fáil is saying one thing and its own people are saying something else here tonight. We do not know what is happening. What chance is there of the workers and the producers in Carlow getting out of a situation such as this if the Government is in such disarray?