I propose to take Questions Nos. 80 and 90 together.
In response to employment difficulties being experienced in County Donegal and, in particular, the immediate risk of job losses at Fruit of the Loom plants, I established the Donegal Employment Initiative on 16 September 1998.
The task force, which is chaired by the Donegal County Manager, includes representatives from the business community, relevant State agencies and Government Departments. The work of the task force is very important to accelerate the attraction of additional industry and business to Donegal.
The terms of reference for the task force are fairly broad and address the critical economic and employment development concerns outlined to me during an intensive round of meetings and plant visits in Donegal on 6 and 7 September 1998. Since its establishment, the task force has met on two occasions and has agreed a programme of work to ensure that urgent action is taken to complete the tasks it has been assigned under its terms of reference.
The first task is to prepare a strategy to offset and compensate for the immediate risk of job losses at Fruit of the Loom plants in Donegal. The task force decided to plan the establishment of support services for workers made redundant or who are at risk of losing their jobs, to examine the skills base and retraining needs of workers and to examine, in the areas suffering job losses, alternative employment possibilities and how to attract replacement industries.