I sought permission to raise on the Adjournment the serious matter of the closing down of the IMP meat processing factory in Leixlip for a limited period because the information I received from representatives of the workers is that on Friday last 450 people got one week's notice that the industry would be closed down for at least a month. I understand that 650 people are employed there and I need not stress that the laying off of 450 workers will cause a lot of hardship. I am raising this matter in the hope that the Minister for Agriculture can do something to keep this lay-off to a minimum. The Minister should use his influence with the management to see if the situation can be eased.
I understand that talks did not take place prior to the serving of the notice and for that reason it is possible that if talks were arranged something could be done. I know the workers concerned and they are not unreasonable people. They do not want to cause trouble. I am also acquainted with those on the management side and they are reasonable people. I am sure both sides would be anxious to minimise the hardship involved. Discussions could take place with a view to, for instance, reducing the number and Finding other work for the remainder. Another suggestion is that those involved should take their holidays now. That would mean that the period off work before cattle become available again would be short.
The immediate cause of the close down is the shortage of cattle. I am aware that at this time of the year there is always a shortage of cattle but for a long number of years there has not been any trouble in the industry or closures. The last time there was any difTiculty was in 1972 when staff were put on short time for a period. The arrangement then did not work out very satisfactorily. Everybody feels that the shortage of cattle is an artificial one that has been created by the crazy 2 per cent levy announced in the budget. Farmers rushed to avoid paying that levy, a natural reaction, and anything that was fit or near fit for sale was sold. The cattle that are left are in poor condition because of the hard and long winter and the fact that there is no fodder available. There is little grass to put condition on them and the anticipation is that cattle will be in short supply for some time to come.
If the Minister moved quickly in relation to this problem some hardship could be relieved. We all have a responsibility to try to avoid hardship. In the long term there are other procedures that could be adopted in relation to the entire processing industry. One of the things that has been causing difTiculty is the MCAs not applying to certain processed products. I understand that that position has improved substantially due to the devaluation of the British Green £ by 5 per cent and the improvement in sterling and that the loss involved on the raw materials is : now less than it was. However, it still represents on a normal sized bullock a £5 difference and on cows a difference of £8 to £10. It is still serious and there is still an element of instability there that must be rectified. That can fluctuate and people cannot seriously go into further processing that is possible and necessary to keep people employed until some stability is brought into that sector. The only way that can be done is to rectify the MCA situation as a matter of urgency.