Deputy Seán Byrne has been given permission to raise a matter on the Adjournment of the House.
Adjournment Debate. - Carrick-on-Suir (Tipperary) Factory.
On a point of order, I should like to know if there is any precedent of the House, going back over the Chair's experience——
That is not a point of order and the Deputy should know that.
On many occasions I have heard the Chair quote precedent to us in his decisions and I am asking him if he can give any precedent in the House for refusing the point of order of Deputy Hilliard, who made the point that when a motion before the House for debate was in the name of a particular Minister——
I ruled that it was in order but there was such chaos and disorder in the House — I have not seen the scale of it since I came here——
I will endeavour to ensure that does not happen now. I know from my experience here that the Chair is guided constantly by precedent. Deputy Hilliard was making a point of order in relation to the procedure of the debate on the budget which went right to the root of the debate in that the person in whose name the debate was introduced was no longer that Minister.
It was in the name of the Minister for Finance.
It was introduced by the Minister for Finance, Deputy Alan Dukes.
I am calling on Deputy Seán Byrne.
Can the Chair quote to me any precedent for his decision to depart from the House?
It is elementary and a lawyer should not have to ask me that. Is the Deputy saying that if there was an action pending in the name of the Minister for Finance in the High Court and the Minister died that the action would die with him? Of course it would not.
This is not an action in the High Court and the Minister has not died, whatever about politically.
It is the same principle. If that point came from a layman I could understand it and I am sorry to have to say that.
The motion was introduced by the Minister and there is no precedent for a budget debate being interrupted to replace a Minister. The point Deputy Hilliard was making was at least worth hearing. There is no precedent at all for just departing.
It is an awful pity that Members did not behave in such a way that I could hear it.
When I tried to raise that I was attacked by the Minister for Foreign Affairs.
Before the Deputy leaves the House I should like to say something to put the record right. I ruled not once but twice that the motion was in order and that Deputy Hilliard was in order in speaking and I called on him to speak.
He was asking for clarification of a point when you left.
I had made my ruling.
I should like to thank the Chair for permitting me to raise this issue on the Adjournment. With the permission of the Chair I should like to share my time with Deputies McCarthy and Griffin, who are from the same constituency. Unfortunately, Deputy Seán Treacy was not available to share the time. The Plunder and Pollack tannery in Carrick-on-Suir up to 1980 employed almost 300 people with branches in Portlaw and Dungarvan in the constituency of the Minister of State. It created valuable employment in Carrick-on-Suir but in mid-1980 there was a loss of 170 jobs. The industry was worth £1.3 million to the local economy in wages annually.
I should like to tell the House that 34 per cent of the population are unemployed while the national average is 18 per cent. The male unemployment amounts to 40 per cent which is shocking for any town of its size. Over the years Plunder and Pollack developed markets throughout the world for their products and at the time they closed down in mid1985 they had guaranteed orders that would carry them on for at least two years. The workforce had a great track record as far as attendance and skill was concerned. The town has also suffered greatly from the closure of other industries but I will not deal with them today.
I should like to thank the Minister of State, and Minister Bruton, for devoting a lot of time to this matter and appeal to them to speed up the opening of the new industry in the town. The factory was taken over six or eight months ago and the people in the area are very worried as to when it will open. I appeal to the Minister of State to do his utmost to see to it that the factory is opened very soon.
I should like to support the words of Deputy Byrne and thank him for giving me an opportunity to say something in support of the workers in the town of Carrick-on-Suir. In the town unemployment is rife. Carrick-on-Suir has had a bad history in the last couple of years in regard to employment. Recently an IDA developed factory, Rexnord, closed and that was followed by Plunder and Pollack being put into receivership. As a result there are almost 700 people unemployed in the town, giving an unemployment average of almost 34 per cent or double the national average. Of the number unemployed almost 50 per cent are males. One can see from those figures that most of the male population of the town do not have jobs. That is unfortunate. The tradition in the tannery works was handed down from father to son and the workforce was very responsible. Labour relations were exceptionally good and there was never a major strike. Recently the Irish Leather group of companies were purchased by a private individual whom I met within the last ten days. I emphasised to him the need to get some type of development going in the town. I know he has already put into operation plans for Dungarvan and Portlaw, but I would appeal to him and to the Minister to consider Carrick-on-Suir in the light of an area in which development can proceed on a profitable basis. It may be that there will be a decision not to continue with the type of work that was carried on there before, but I trust that, in their discussions with the new owner, the Department will develop some special form of grant aid through the IDA so that employment in the plant can be re-established.
I thank my colleagues, Deputy Byrne and Deputy McCarthy for allowing me some of their time on this question and I join with them in urging the Minister to take an interest in Carrick-on-Suir. My colleagues from South Tipperary and I are at one in this matter. No one is trying to gain any political advantage from the misfortunes of the people of Carrick-on-Suir.
As has been outlined by my colleagues, the level of unemployment in the town may be a national record. Unfortunately this is the most blighted part, in terms of employment, in the South Tipperary constituency and that is why, in a united voice, we are asking the Minister to do something for the workers of Carrick-on-Suir.
Irish Leathers was purchased on 11 November by the International Hide and Skin Company. This move was welcomed widely by the people of the town in the belief that their tannery in which they had a justifiable pride would continue in existence. However, in the six months that have elapsed since then there have been no indications that the plant would be reopened as a full bovine tannery as was the case before. I understand that the International Hide and Skin Company are making an application for grant assistance to the IDA. I urge the Minister to grant this assistance immediately so that the plant may reopen. There are very good reasons for reopening it. It is the only full bovine tannery facility remaining in Ireland so that if it remains closed the country will be totally dependent on imports from other EC countries and perhaps from countries outside the Community. With hide prices falling and energy costs generally on a downward trend, it should be very attractive financially to continue the leather finishing process. In the past the plant at Carrick-on-Suir was very viable. Despite keen competition from foreign markets there was a consistent demand for the home product mainly due to its high standard.
Another factor is that in Carrick-on-Suir and the surrounding areas there is a fully trained workforce. That workforce could be recruited at short notice. Its average age is 30 to 35 years.
Industrial relations at the tanning plant were very satisfactory. There has never been a major strike in its long history. I understand from the trade unions and the workers that they welcome the new ownership and will co-operate with the new owner in every way possible. Their one concern is that the tannery be reopened so as to provide much needed employment in the area.
The demand for leather currently is good and that trend is continuing upwards. Before the closure of the plant, market prices were substantially export orientated. I understand that at the time the plant closed 80 per cent of the orders were for foreign markets. The people of Carrick-on-Suir take great pride in their range of customers which include the British and the Polish Ministeries of Defence both of which down through the years depended on the standard product from Carrick-on-Suir. The continuous placing of orders by these outlets with the plant was an indication of the high quality of the finished product.
Other industries in the town have suffered in the recent past. Though it was anticipated that Rexnord would expand, it closed and there was the closure also of Powers, a local bottling company. This left no major male employment outlet in the town. I understand that there are branches of the International Hide and Skin group in the constituency of the Minister of State but I would emphasise to the Minister the plight of Carrick-on-Suir which is half way between the major towns of Waterford and Clonmel. In the case of the plant in question much of the workforce was drawn from Carrick-on-Suir. I trust that we will be able to convey to the people of the town this evening some hope and some bright prospects for the continuation of a full bovine tannery in the town.
Let me say straight away that I have every sympathy with the concern expressed by Deputy Byrne and also by Deputy McCarthy and Deputy Griffin about the former Irish Leathers factory in Carrick-on-Suir. It is always sad when an industrial project closes down, especially when it is a traditional area of production. I realise fully, as the State agencies realised, the strategic importance of that industry to the economy.
Before commenting in detail on Carrick-on-Suir, however, I think it worth while to give a very brief history of the events leading up to the closure of a number of Irish Leathers' plants.
The Irish Leathers group were a strong cornerstone of indigenous Irish industry for many years with plants in Dungarvan, Portlaw, Carrick-on-Suir and Carlow. Unfortunately, however, the group began to incur losses from 1978 and it was apparent that there was a number of weaknesses in the group which militated against successful trading. Fóir Teoranta put in a lot of finance but, sadly, losses continued and they had no choice but to appoint a receiver in June 1985. By that time Irish Leathers had been the subject of the highest moneys ever invested by Fóir Teoranta in a company in difficulties — more than £8 million. The effort was not successful and that 370 workers in the different plants lost their jobs.
In my role of Minister of State responsible for the sectoral aspects of Irish industry, I urged that every effort should be made to have this traditional industry revived as soon as possible and in a form which would assure us of long term viability.
In 1985, International Hide and Skin, a large hide and skin merchanting group, purchased the Irish Leathers assets from the receiver. Since the purchase of the assets, International Hide and Skin have been involved in a detailed assessment of the viability of each of the plants involved. The new owners have spent a substantial sum in refurbishment while a considerable amount of time has also been spent examining plant and process lay out and the most modern equipment that needs to be installed. There is a need to update the machinery and the processing facilities generally.
The Minister met a deputation comprised of local interests in Carrick-on-Suir last Friday. Deputy Byrne was a member of the deputation. He will be aware that the Minister indicated that the IDA were considering a proposal from the new owners of Irish Leathers but that the matter was complex and he was not in a position to give any details without breaching the confidentiality of the matter. The Deputies will accept that, as do I. The Minister indicated that the viability of all plants within the Irish Leathers group, including Carrick-on-Suir, was being assessed and that the IDA would give full consideration to proposals put forward.
I am pleased to say that the IDA are on the verge of concluding a restructuring package with the company which, if accepted, will lay down a path for the orderly and viable revival of this stategically important indigenous Irish industry. This is the turning point and I hope it will result in the successful revival of this tanning industry which is important not only to Waterford but to the country as a nation.
I know Deputies will appreciate that it is in nobody's interests to try to anticipate the outcome of the grant application proposals as premature statements could very easily jeoparadise negotiations between the promoters and the IDA. I need hardly tell the House that I have, perhaps, an even greater interest in the matter than the Deputies because of the Dungarvan and Portlaw connection, but I intend to await the full deliberations of the IDA before making any statements, because of confidentiality. Having said that, I am very hopeful of a satisfactory outcome to the negotiations and I look forward to seeing a restructured group which will regain the former glories of the Irish Leather industry.
I understand there will be need for a phased development of the group's activities. I do not wish to go beyond that point now because it will be the promoter's decision as to the time scale. It will be necessary to accept the IDA package and then the promoter can go about his own business. I know he is committed to the industry, in which he has an excellent record. He is going about this in a sensible way that will ensure viability in the long run.
I note the points made by the Deputies in regard to unemployment generally in Carrick-on-Suir. They will agree that the Minister, Deputy Bruton, gave the deputation a sympathetic hearing — I have seen the notes of the meeting. He indicated that the IDA will consider the position generally with a view to considering the possibilities that exist for new industry. I will be examining those possibilities.
As Deputy Griffin said, Rexnord closed in Carrick-on-Suir. I was most unhappy about the proposed replacement industry from within Rexnord. For reasons known to the Deputies, the industry did not go to Carrick-on-Suir. Deputies know of my uneasiness and displeasure about the reasons why it was not possible to persuade the group to bring another company to Carrick-on-Suir. We all appreciate that there is a need for good industrial relations and for understanding between trade unions, employees and employers: good industrial relations are a sine qua non of industrial progress. We face intense competition abroad. We have an obligations to ensure that good industrial relations will be maintained and that nothing will be done to jeoparadise the prospects for industrial establishment. I say this in a general sense because it refers to the whole country. Good industrial relations and a flexible attitude to the needs of industry are required at a time when technology has changed things so rapidly and when the needs of industry are changing rapidly.
Deputies can be fully assured that I will keep a note of what they have said in relation to unemployment in Carrick-on-Suir and that my Department will continue to bring the importance of Carrick-on-Suir to the notice of promoters so that they will visit the town with a view to establishing industries there.
The Dáil adjourned at 5.30 p.m. until 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 18 February 1986.