asked the Minister for Industry, Trade, Commerce and Tourism if, in view of the fact that it is now one year since the establishment of the special task force to report on the unemployment problems of Cork caused by the closure of Ford and Dunlop, he will make a copy of the report available to the House; and if he will give details of the jobs created in the Cork region as a result of the setting-up of the task force.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Cork Unemployment.
6.
I have already outlined to the House, in reply to a question from Deputy Pearse Wyse on 24 May 1984 why the Report of the Working Group on Employment in Cork, is not being published.
The detailed Action Plan for Cork announced by me on 11 May 1984 had two main elements:
(a) an immediate substantial capital injection for infrastructural work in the greater Cork area, and
(b) long-term developmental measures designed to secure the future of the greater Cork area as a prime location for industry.
I am not in a position to give details of the jobs which have arisen from the infrastructural work as this involves a wide range of activities, responsibility for which is spread over a number of Departments.
Foremost among the long-term development measures aimed at increasing industrial employment was the decision to declare Ringaskiddy a free port and to designate the estate for higher levels of IDA grant assistance. Ringaskiddy was designated for higher grants with effect from 5 November 1984 and legislation on the establishment of the free port is currently being prepared by the Minister for Communications. The IDA have utilised these incentives in an intensified marketing programme to bring the facilities of Ringaskiddy to the attention of potential industrialists, particularly in Europe and North America. As a result discussions are taking place with a number of potential investors who have expressed interest in locating in the area. Already, Angus-Isochem have announced their decision to locate a pharmaceutical project at Ringaskiddy which is expected to employ 140 people after two years.
In order to encourage the development of small industry, the Togher, Hollyhill and Churchfield Industrial Estates were also designated with effect from 5 November 1984. This was particularly aimed at encouraging local entrepreneurship and small industry projects. In fact, during 1984, the Cork Small Industry Board approved grant assistance of £1.31 million to 60 projects with an estimated fixed asset investment of £2.39 million. Furthermore, the Enterprise Centre, currently under construction at North Mall, Cork will be completed later this year.
Among the companies already located in Cork, there have been increases in employment in 1984 in Liebert Corporation, Western Digital, Iprodex Manufacturing and Mech. Con. Ltd. totalling altogether 350 jobs. Also during 1984, Bourns Electronics announced a major expansion programme involving an additional 200 jobs over the next two years.
In their future market promotional programme for Cork, the IDA will pay particular attention to the areas of opportunity highlighted in the action plan especially the food processing, electronics and service industry sectors.
It is very disappointing to note from what the Minister has stated that there are no jobs for the free port of Ringaskiddy. We have seen what happened in the case of the ferry in recent days.
A question, please, Deputy.
Nor has he said when the report of the working group will become available though it is a year now since it was established. Dunlops and Fords are a long time gone and we have seen no replacement for them. It is very obvious that the Minister and the Government are abandoning the Cork area.
Absolutely wrong. As I indicated, 350 jobs were created in expansions by industries in Cork. I can give the details of the number of job gains in each one of them.
They are proposed jobs.
There has been a greatly increased number of site visits by foreign industrialists to Cork in the past 12 months over the previous 12 months. There were 107 first time site visits to Cork in the past 12 months as against 64 site visits in the previous 12 months which indicates a clear pickup in interest and activity as a result of the IDA's increased promotional programme. There is also clear evidence that the number of new jobs created in manufacturing in Cork this year is greater than it was in the previous year. I also have a lengthy report which I could go through on the various projects approved under the task force programme for road building and bridge building in the Cork area. All of these have gone ahead on schedule practically without exception with much improved facilities in infrastructure in the Cork area as a result. If I went down through that list, which time does not permit, the Deputy would see how much has been done in infrastructure and industry since the task force report was considered by the Government and their decision announced.
This must be a source of great disappointment to everyone in the Cork area considering the high powered task force appointed by the Government last year. The question relates to making available a copy of the report so that people can see precisely what is intended. The Minister refuses to indicate whether he will make it available. Much of the Minister's reply concerns long term development and new jobs created by the extension of existing industries. They were on stream anyway.
And new industries.
There are very few new industries. The Minister has not given us a clear indication of the number of jobs these new industries are putting on the ground or will provide in the coming year. In the IDA report at the end of December it was stated that there were in excess of 100 new opportunities in industrial development, many of them green field developments, available and committed to. Will he indicate now when he proposes to isolate some of those committed new start ups as mentioned by the IDA in the report on the Cork region? I can take no consolation from the Minister's action so far as a result of the task force operation in Cork. What action can I hope for from the task force which the Minister has appointed to the Castlebar area to relieve the Travenol problem? The Minister has a super task force in Cork. He has given me another action force in Castlebar. If I get something similar to what Cork has got from their task force, I cannot be too hopeful for the future.
I have indicated that major infrastructural investments were undertaken in Cork in the past year as a direct result of the task force. There has been a substantial increase in industrial activity, with 140 jobs created in one new project, 200 jobs in another major expansion, and 350 jobs in a variety of other expansions in other industries.
That is all long term.
They are all jobs created on the ground now.
Are they in the jobs?
I am hopeful that there will be more announcements during this year for Cork as a direct result of the fact that a number of foreign industrialists visited Cork in the past 12 months, almost twice as many as in the previous 12 months.
Can the Minister not issue the first report of the task force?
It was never the intention to publish that document.
Why?
I dealt with that extensively in reply to a question from Deputy Wyse on 24 May.
The public realise that very little has been done and that the Government are ashamed to issue it.
No.
Why not issue it? What is there to be afraid of? Let us see it. The people want to know. The people of Cork are entitled to know.
That was a very good speech and well delivered.
This is what we call the lightening up stuff.
At least that is an explanation of what is going on.
Why can it not be issued? What has anybody to be ashamed of?
It was not prepared with a view to publication. It was prepared to be a basis for Government decisions. Those decisions were announced in detail based on all the recommendations in the task force report by me in Cork and they have been implemented.
Many reports were issued to the House.
I will give the Deputy a copy of the announcement dealing with the Cork task force which goes right down through all the things that are being done as a result of that report. If he wants to, the Deputy can then ask questions about each individual decision announced by the Government and how it is getting on.
I do not want a piecemeal report. I want the report in detail for all Members of the House. The Minister might as well go the whole way now that I have got him to go a little bit of the way.
That press release has been available to the Deputy since May. I am offering to post it to him tomorrow so that he can look at it at his leisure.
When is it proposed to introduce legislation to set up a free port at Ringaskiddy?
Early this year. The Minister for Communications has been drafting it and I expect that it will be introduced some time in this session.
Will the joint partners have a bit of a problem?
Would the Minister not agree that infrastructural development is not industrial development? He has been saying that jobs have been created because of infrastructural developments. In Cork we want something which will solidly replace the Dunlops and Fords and the dockyards which were closed down due to the recession and to Government policy. They were long-established industries. The people of Cork are entitled to their share of industry from this administration. It is rather disappointing that this Government and this Minister are prepared to abandon our city and county.