Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this matter. Our sympathies are most definitely with the workers in Cavan, Blanchardstown and Enniskillen at this very difficult time.

This is a very disappointing development. The Senator has outlined what will be the impact in the three locations, namely: 135 job losses in Blanchardstown; 115 in Cavan; and 20 in Enniskillen. The company has given the reasons behind its decision to withdraw from the British market and to make significant changes to its operations in Ireland. It has experienced a difficult trading period and is now going to focus on the Republic of Ireland market. I do not believe it is fair to say that the company is preparing for an exit. That is by no means an accurate reflection. I am encouraged by the company's statement to the effect that it is fully committed to Ireland, that it will be seeking voluntary redundancies in the first instance and that the process in this regard will be phased over an 18-month period. That is encouraging and I hope that when it is offering terms to workers, the company will recognise the contribution they have made over a long period by offering them a good package. On the positive side, Liberty has confirmed that it is continuing with its IT initiative, which was the basis for the announcement of the creation 150 jobs in 2013. This initiative is located at the Blanchardstown office and it shows that the company continues to be committed to Ireland. We will ensure that the relevant agencies work closely with Liberty in order to see to it that any future opportunities relating to the company can be maximised as it evolves.

My immediate focus rests on the instruction I issued to IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland to redouble their efforts in respect of job creation in County Cavan and to explore all options in the context of replacing the jobs that have been lost there. The past couple of years in Cavan-Monaghan have been good. It is particularly encouraging to see the very strong performance of a number of Irish-owned companies in recent times and quite a number of them across the two counties, including Lakelands, Combilift, Glanbia, Swift and Lagan Brick, have expanded their operations. It is encouraging that in 2014 the IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland job base grew by 9% and that there was an 11% increase in the number of jobs created by means of the local enterprise office, LEO, network. We are enjoying some successes and I am currently developing a regional enterprise strategy. The latter will be for every region but it will have particular focus on the Border region, which has a number of significant strengths upon which we hope to build.

If the employees of Liberty require the assistance of the National Employment Rights Authority, NERA, or other State agencies, in dealing with their current circumstances or making particular decisions, I will be quite happy ensure that it is made available to them. I recognise that this is a difficult time for the people involved. I will ensure that we redouble our efforts. We have witnessed the potential of enterprise in the region and we need to build on that in order to try to replace lost jobs and ensure that opportunities emerge for those people who have been so badly impacted upon by this decision.