Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator, who is from Navan for raising this bombshell this morning. The thoughts and first concern for everyone not only at local level but also Government level is the impact on staff, their families and local community and businesses in County Meath. Having 650 people laid off, even on a temporary basis, is shocking news. The employment situation in the country has generally been improving and has been very positive over the past couple of years. This is a phenomenal shock for people to get out of the blue.

The company has informed the Government that the decision to temporarily suspend operations and place the mine into care and maintenance within the next four weeks is being taken to safeguard the long-term future of the company. That is the essence of what the chief executive said on radio this morning, and the Minister spoke subsequently. They have been in direct contact with each other.

The abruptness of the announcement, as the Senator said, without consultation or advanced notification, was a major shock to the local community. As he indicated, there was word locally in terms of staff overtime, discretionary spending and subcontractors not having their contracts renewed. That sent a clear signal that something was in the offing, but nobody expected the announcement last night.

Government officials are engaging with the company and management team to ensure that staff are looked after. It is important that the company sets out a range of support available to employees during the temporary layoff as quickly as possible. These discussions would not have taken place at this stage. Tara Mines needs to spell out what the expected period of temporary layoff will be.

From a practical point of view, it is important to make sure that as part of the care and maintenance project that will be introduced over the next four weeks the mine is kept in a position whereby once the price improves and cost structures are dealt with it can reopen quickly. We do not want to have to wait a further six months to do some rehabilitative work because the care and maintenance did not keep it up to standard.

From the point of view of the mine, it is important that all necessary funds be expended to ensure it can come back with a prompt opening as quickly as possible. The Department has established a statutory process to protect employees. The full range of State supports will be available for employees who are affected. We will work with the company to explore all options to secure the long-term future of the mine and employment in the area. The parent company has identified a range of operational challenges. They mentioned, and it was on the radio this morning, the decline in the price of zinc, high energy prices and general cost inflation as contributory factors. The company has said that the losses were not sustainable at this point in time. The temporary closure will also impact on the Irish subcontractors and sub-suppliers. I think the ripple effect in the town will be significant. A couple of thousand families will be impacted as well as the direct employees. We will work with them to win alternative contracts through Enterprise Ireland, as appropriate. By this I mean working with the Irish sub-suppliers. They have skills that should be able to be used in other major projects in the country in the short term.

Once again, I want to thank Senator Cassels for raising this issue, which has been a shock. It is not just a shock for Navan and Meath and the employees and subcontractors and their families. It is a shock for the whole country to get a bolt out of the blue like this.