Adjournment Debate.

Company Closures.

Deputy Bernard Allen

Heineken's decision to close its former competitor in Cork, the Beamish and Crawford brewery, makes the Competition Authority look incompetent for approving Heineken's takeover of the company. However, there is a ray of light for the brewery, which is closing with the loss of between 100 and 200 jobs. Various media outlets have reported that SABMiller, a former partner of Beamish and Crawford, may be interested in buying the brewery from Heineken and continuing production of its brands from the site. The Government must state whether it has done any groundwork on this possible takeover. Has the Government contacted the interested parties with a view to saving as many jobs as possible? The Government must also state what it has done to ensure proper competition in the beer market.

I am particularly concerned at the behaviour of the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Coughlan, on the day the closure was announced. She failed to show any real concern about the Beamish closure when she was in Cork last Thursday. Instead, she was more concerned with swanning around other parts of the city and county where new jobs would be announced. Her goal was to take credit for the new jobs, none of which has yet been created, while avoiding any association with the brewery job losses.

The Government does not seem to value indigenous industry. Ministers do not seem interested in doing the hard work to help preserve local companies. Time and again, they seem more interested in attending photocalls for projects which have still not happened.

It may not be too late to act if the Government is innovative and committed. I am looking forward to hearing the Minister of State, Deputy Kelleher's, response tonight. So too are hundreds of families who are dependent on the actions of the Government. Cork will be a poorer and a sadder place this Christmas season with the closure of one of its traditional and historical industries. The loss to Cork city of a little piece of its heart with the closure of a centuries old brewing tradition on the landmark Beamish site is traumatic.

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Deputy Billy Kelleher)

I thank Deputy Allen for raising this matter. Like him, I am disappointed to hear about the job losses at this particular company. It is a historic company, being one of the oldest trading in Cork. Beamish has been synonymous with Cork for many years. Historians have reported there was a brewing site on South Main Street for over 400 years and Beamish has been on that site for centuries. Cork people have a strong emotional attachment to the brewery not just regarding the Beamish brand, but also the generations that have worked there.

Last Thursday, Heineken Ireland briefed its Beamish and Crawford staff on the conclusions of its integration review process following the recent unconditional approval by the independent Competition Authority regarding the acquisition of Beamish and Crawford.

Having reviewed the capability and capacity of the Beamish plant, the company decided, for its own reasons, to consolidate production in Heineken Ireland's Leitrim Street brewery in Cork and to close the Beamish and Crawford Brewery next year. The key considerations the company took into account in reaching its decision included an investment requirement of approximately €15 million to meet international brewing standards, difficulty of expansion at the Beamish site, excess brewing capacity at Heineken Ireland and changing market dynamics, resulting in a declining beer market.

As a result of the integration of the commercial and administrative activities, up to 40 employees from Beamish and Crawford will transfer to Heineken Ireland and it is anticipated that approximately 120 people will be made redundant. This has been a difficult decision for the company to make since it began operations in Cork in 1983 when it acquired Murphy's Brewery. The company has already agreed comprehensive severance terms with the trade unions. It will also provide whatever outplacement support is required, as well as career counselling, job search training and pension advice to all the staff who will lose their jobs.

In April 2008, Enterprise Ireland met with Heineken Ireland to discuss how the agency might work with the enlarged Heineken operations in Cork to develop their potential. This was with a view to enhancing its export capabilities and to exploring new investment opportunities. Further discussions were deferred pending the strategic review of the merger operations in Cork. Subsequent to the recent decision by Heineken Ireland, discussions took place with the company and a follow-up meeting will take place shortly.

The State development agencies are adopting a co-ordinated approach in response to these job losses. IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, FÁS and the county development board will be lending their assistance. This multi-agency approach is directed at assisting all the employees affected and seeks to enhance the future employment prospects of the workforce. The agencies will also support any individual who wishes to start his or her own business.

I accept the visit to Cork last week of the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment coincided with the Heineken Ireland announcement. However, her diary was organised for the announcement of 145 jobs in Option Wireless Limited in Kilbarry and up to 350 jobs at the Quinn Insurance call centre in Little Island some weeks before the Heineken Ireland announcement. It is unfair for the Deputy to suggest the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment was trying to camouflage the job losses at Beamish and Crawford.

Deputy Bernard Allen

I did not say that. The Minister of State is misrepresenting what I said. She was within a stone's throw of the Beamish and Crawford brewery.

Acting Chairman

Please, Deputy. The Minister of State has a limited time slot.

Deputy Billy Kelleher

Yes, she was, but at the time the staff were being informed by Heineken Ireland of the discussions with the trade unions and others on the merger.

It will be a sad day when brewing ceases on that site. All we can hope is that the agreed severance packages will be adhered to and that FÁS and other training agencies will assist those who have lost their jobs. In the meantime, we must ensure supports are given to Heineken Ireland so that it will be able to expand and open up new markets to ensure Our Lady's Well brewery will continue to prosper and provide employment.

Deputy Bernard Allen

What about the SABMiller approach?

Deputy Billy Kelleher

I accept that coming up to Christmas it is a difficult time for the families of those employees affected. Deputy Allen and I know people who work and have worked in Beamish.

I will inquire of the SABMiller approach and revert to the Deputy.

Water and Sewerage Schemes.

Deputy Pat Breen

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for facilitating me in raising this matter.

The Doolin sewerage scheme was included in the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government's water services programme 2007 to 2009 and was to start construction in 2008, but work on it has yet to begin. When I raised this matter by way of parliamentary question in April 2008, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government advised me his Department had provided funding of up to €6.025 million for three schemes, Corofin, Ballyvaughan and Doolin, in August 2007. In the meantime the Corofin project has commenced construction, which I welcome, and a draft foreshore licence is expected to be issued shortly for Ballyvaughan.

The problems being experienced in providing a sewerage scheme in Doolin are replicated in every village and town in County Clare. The shortage of funding for such schemes has meant that many projects have been revised as if they were to cut their cloth to measure. Other instances, such as in Scarrif in east Clare and the experience of the residents of Ballyminogue where an extension of the sewage line to their homes was ruled out, highlight the need for the Minister to explore new and innovative ways of addressing this cost issue to ensure water and sewerage schemes can be extended to rural villages and towns. While Doolin sits and waits, other schemes in Clare have started construction but the majority are still at various stages of progression from Broadford to Carrigaholt, Labasheeda and Cooraclare to Ennistymon, Liscannor, Miltown Malbay and Spanish Point right down into east Clare at O'Callaghans Mills, O'Briens Bridge and Cratloe. The delay in resolving the situation in Doolin is impacting negatively on the development of the village and indeed in the neighbouring town of Miltown Malbay. Projects like roads, footpaths and lighting are all on hold because of this.

The Minister of State, Deputy Kitt, will respond to this Adjournment matter and I am sure he is familiar with Doolin. Many people have holidayed there over the years. It is a coastal village, bordered by Lisdoonvarna and the heartland of north Clare, adjacent to Miltown Malbay and close to the renowned Cliffs of Moher and the Burren. It is a well known centre of traditional Irish music and a popular tourist destination. Many musicians have lived or played there including the late, great Micho Russell and his brothers Packie and Gussie.

Many of those who have visited Doolin have enjoyed Irish music in the village's three pubs. Doolin has a top class tourist product available including accommodation ranging from bed and breakfasts, farmhouses, guesthouses, hotels and hostels to camping, caravan sites and self-catering. Most people living and working in Doolin depend on tourism for a living. More than 3,000 tourists come to Doolin every year during the summer season and it is an appealing tourist location that urgently needs infrastructure. In 2008 it is unacceptable that residents and tourists are forced to walk on unlit roads late in the evening. It is a health and safety issue.

Doolin is also home to a dedicated 26 member rescue service. A group of dedicated individuals, under the captaincy of Mattie Shannon, risk their lives every day for others. I compliment the service and thank it for the work it has done. This volunteer group is operating out of a building that is no bigger than an average garden shed. I hope and pray that a proper facility will be put in place in the new year. Is it right that they should be forced to battle the poor infrastructure while they go about their life-saving work?

Regarding the sewerage scheme, my understanding is that the original proposal was to have an out-fall sewer to the sea. I understand that Clare County Council is now looking at an alternative and that it is in negotiations with a local landowner to purchase a site to put in an alternative treatment plant. An environmental impact assessment is currently being carried out and Clare County Council is awaiting this report.

The purchase of this site will facilitate the relevant laying of pipes joining the redesigned scheme. The Department's National Parks and Wildlife Service will then have to view this proposal and comment on the findings of the report. I urge the Minister of State to ensure that this stage of the process moves as swiftly as possible recognising the ecological issues that must be addressed.

When all the various reports are finalised and the new scheme is re-designed by Clare County Council I urge the Department, and the Minister of State as a neighbouring Oireachtas Member, to speed up the scheme. We do not want the people of Doolin to go without the scheme for another 12 months. They desperately need this infrastructure. The entire area is dependent on the successful completion of this sewerage scheme to complement tourism. I urge the Minister of State to act as quickly as possible.

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Deputy Michael P. Kitt)

I am taking this matter on behalf of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, who regrets that he cannot be present. I thank Deputy Breen for raising this matter.

Doolin is linked with Ballyvaughan and Corofin as part of a grouped sewerage scheme that is funded under my Department's water services investment programme 2007-09. It is one of some 25 water and sewerage schemes included in the programme for County Clare. Together these schemes will provide modern water and wastewater services in almost 40 different areas of the county. The overall value of this package is €236 million and it will make a huge difference to environmental standards and economic development opportunities all over Clare.

The Ballyvaughan, Corofin and Doolin project will provide new wastewater treatment plants for each of the three locations, as well as new and improved sewage collection networks. It will play a major role in facilitating development and supporting the tourism sector, which is of paramount importance to these communities.

The high cost of servicing low density unsewered development has been an issue with a number of sewerage schemes in Clare. It has been necessary to review and adjust the design of these schemes in order to bring costs down to a level where they could be justified in economic terms. This was successfully achieved with the Feakle, Scarriff and Quilty scheme where my Department's Exchequer contribution has been agreed and work is well under way.

The same issue of affordability also arose with the Ballyvaughan, Corofin and Doolin project. Following examination of Clare County Council's water services pricing policy and economic review reports for the project, Exchequer funding of up to €6.025 million was approved by my Department under the water services investment programme in August 2007. The approval of this funding, which is in line with the affordability criteria for all new sewerage schemes, was intended to give Clare County Council a clear financial structure within which it could recast the design of the scheme in a more economically efficient way.

Also in August 2007, approval was given to the council to advance the scheme for Corofin which, unlike the other two locations, does not require a foreshore licence. Work is now under way on that element of the project.

I agree with Deputy Breen on the great appeal of Doolin. Clare County Council is reviewing the proposal in light of the funding available from my Department and issues relating to the foreshore licence. Further progress is therefore in the council's hands at the moment and is not subject to any submission currently before my Department for consideration. I assure the Deputy that the Department will deal quickly with any revised proposals received from the council with a view to getting the scheme to construction at an early date.

School Accommodation.

Deputy Joe Costello

This issue is one that virtually every Member experiences in his or her constituency. I refer to large prefabricated school buildings, by and large, portakabins, inadequate conditions, inadequate provision for children and schools awaiting a permanent site and permanent recognition. The matter is the bane of the primary school system.

The school to which I refer is Glasnevin Educate Together, which was founded in September 2002 under the patronage of Educate Together. It has a special unit for children with autistic spectrum disorder, which was opened in September 2003 by the then Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern. In the six years since it opened, numbers have increased steadily. There are currently 210 children and there is a waiting list of 219 children, who would gladly come to the school in 2009 but unfortunately that is impossible in the present circumstances. The school is viable but it is awaiting recognition from the Department of Education and Science. The result of the refusal to grant permanent status means that the school is deprived of the minor works grant, which is worth €9,163 this year. I tabled a question on this last month. The effect of non-recognition is that necessary grants for the maintenance of the school are denied.

The school has a student population representing 25 nationalities, a sizeable number. It is dealing with major ethnic diversity that requires extra attention, facilities and support. The building is drafty, inadequate, old, cold and cramped. It has unsanitary toilet facilities and portakabins. Even the unit for autism is located in a portakabin. The schoolyard is tiny and there is very little space for the children to play in, with the result that they must go to the local GAA club's playing fields for physical education. There is no hall for school events. The facilities are minimal. Teachers, staff, pupils and parents are working together in difficult circumstances to provide quality education and are not getting assistance they deserve from the Department of Education and Science. Last year, there was a glimmer of light on the horizon when the Department sanctioned the acquisition of a three-acre site for the school and requested the OPW to source same. However, the school was informed recently that, because of cuts in capital expenditure, the Department had postponed the site acquisition and, therefore, it has gone down the tubes.

The school is in limbo as it has neither permanent recognition nor permanent accommodation. It has not received the grants and additional funding to which it should be entitled at this time. Everybody is working and studying in unsatisfactory, inadequate conditions. The Minister of State can imagine what it is like with cold, foggy and wet days coming one after the other, while the exact opposite is the case in the summer when it is sticky and unbearably hot. I call on him to make progress. I would like the Department to show its intent to address the situation in the short rather than the long term.

Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science (Deputy Seán Haughey)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter as it provides an opportunity to outline to the House the history behind Glasnevin Educate Together and why it does not have permanent recognition at this time. Multi-denominational schools serve a broad demographic area. On this basis, the north inner city, including Glasnevin, has for a number of years been served by two such schools, namely, the north Dublin national school project and Dublin 7 Educate Together national school.

Glasnevin Educate Together commenced operation in September 2002 as Dublin North-Central Educate Together national school, subsequently changing its name to Glasnevin Educate Together national school. The school was given provisional recognition at that time because the Department accepted the argument made by its proposers that there was a need for a separate multi-denominational school to serve the Clontarf-Marino-Fairview area of Dublin. When provisional recognition was granted, it was a condition that the patron provided suitable accommodation for the school in the area it intended to serve and this accommodation was required to be capable of meeting the school's needs until the Department was in a position to provide permanent accommodation, assuming the school, ultimately, achieved this status. To date, the patron has not been able to do this and the school is located on a temporary basis in premises outside the Clontarf-Marino-Fairview area, the intended catchment area for the school. It continues to be the Department's intention to relocate this school to that area if and when suitable accommodation becomes available and as the funding situation allows.

For the purposes of clarity, the Minister for Education and Science would like to point out that each new school is generally established with provisional recognition to ensure, among other things, that it has a long-term viability and that it is operating in accordance with the Rules for National Schools. Schools only attract capital funding when permanent recognition is awarded, although schools with temporary recognition receive State support by way of payment of teachers' salaries, start-up and rental grant aid, school transport, where appropriate, and so on.

Four main criteria are considered before granting permanent recognition to a school. These are whether the school is operating in accordance with the Rules for National Schools, whether the school has demonstrated viability in terms of enrolment, whether the school's accommodation is deemed suitable to meet its needs until the Department is in a position to provide permanent accommodation and whether the school is meeting a need which is not being met by existing schools. While the Department is satisfied that Glasnevin Educate Together meets the first two criteria, it is not satisfied that it has met the third and fourth, although the fourth is the over-riding issue, given, as the Minister said, the north city is served by two multi-denominational education providers. While it is the patron's responsibility to secure alternative suitable accommodation, the Department is willing to assist it in identifying this. To this end, it has asked the OPW to endeavour to identify suitable accommodation. The difficulty of identifying appropriate accommodation for school use at a reasonable cost in this built-up area, however, should not be underestimated. The Department is willing to consider any options the school might present.

When a solution has been found to this aspect of the matter and the school has had an opportunity to demonstrate viability in its original intended location, the Department will consider the question of permanent recognition again. I thank the Deputy again for raising this matter and for allowing me to explain the background to this case. I assure him that the Department wishes to see the school properly located and flourishing in its own area and it will provide any assistance it can to achieve this. As a Deputy for Dublin North-Central, I would be glad to take an ongoing interest in this matter.

Special Educational Needs.

Deputy Jimmy Deenihan

A total of 561 children are enrolled in Scoil Mhuire na mBráithre CBS, Clounalour, Tralee, County Kerry, approximately 40% of whom may be categorised as international children or new Irish. They have either been born in another country or their parents have come to this country as economic migrants or asylum seekers. Many of the children have benefited from language support. It provides them with easier access to all subjects and improves their competency in the English language. It gives them greater confidence and improved language communications skills in the school and the community and it makes it easier for teachers to communicate with them to pass on knowledge. In many cases it helps their parents to improve their English language skills and some children even become the spokesperson for their family.

The Department of Education and Science guidelines allow for six language support teachers when a school has 121 children with language needs. However, currently 163 children are in receipt of language support in the school. The majority of them started school with little or no English. This still only gives the school an allocation of six language support teachers who are currently employed on a temporary basis. This pupil-language support teacher ratio is, therefore, approximately 27:1. However, when the proposed cuts are applied to the school, this will lead to an increase in the pupil-language support teacher ratio to 81:1 and a loss of four teachers. I am sure the Minister of State will agree the loss of four teachers who provide this vital support to the new Irish will have a major effect on the school. It is impossible to understand how such a ratio would enable these children to acquire the necessary language skills to access the school curriculum and to keep pace with their Irish counterparts.

The most vulnerable children in the school will also be forced to suffer. As a non-DEIS school, grants to help children from less well-off families with the purchase of uniforms, track suits, school books, school trips and other school activities will be abolished. All equipment and resource grants for teachers who work with children with learning difficulties will be abolished. Funding to the school will significantly reduce, with cuts of €3,000 in the Traveller grant, €4,000 in resource teacher grants, €10,000 in the free book grant and €17,000 in the disadvantage, non-DEIS, grant.

Historically, the school has opened its doors to children from all socio-economic sectors of the community and, as a consequence, it has large numbers of children from the international community along with children from disadvantaged backgrounds and children from the Traveller community. For a long time, Tralee has been highlighted as an economic blackspot with a large number of families experiencing socio-economic disadvantage.

Furthermore, there may be a perception that many international families have started to return to their country of origin. However, the experience of the school is that its enrolment figures of international children have increased steadily in recent years and have done so again this year, hence the figure of 163 children this September. The enrolment figures for September 2009 indicate that the numbers will continue to grow next year. The school's experience over the years is that many of the international children are enrolled later in the year and many more are enrolled during the summer months.

The Government also reduced class sizes for the most disadvantaged in DEIS schools to an average of one teacher for every 20 pupils in junior classes and an average of one teacher for every 24 pupils in senior classes and these will not change in 2009. When one adds up all the teachers in the system there is one teacher for every 16 pupils in primary schools.

It will be necessary in the more testing economic climate ahead for us to continue to target and prioritise our resources to maximum effect for everyone. While teacher numbers are important numerous influential reports have highlighted the fact that teacher quality is the single most important factor, far and above anything else, in improving educational outcomes for children. Ensuring high-quality teaching and learning is a challenge and dealing with factors that inhibit it represents a challenge for the Government, the Department, school management and the teacher unions.

The Department of Education and Science will advise individual schools in the normal way on their staffing and grant allocations. The preparatory work for this has commenced with the processing of enrolment data that has been received from schools. The staffing allocation processes, including notification to schools, will commence early in the new year and Scoil Mhuire na mBráithre CBS primary school will also receive its notification in due course. The allocation process includes appellate mechanisms under which schools can appeal against the allocation due to them under the staffing schedules.

In addition to the mainstream classroom teachers the Department also allocates teaching resources to schools for special needs and language support. The final allocation to a school is also a function of the operation of the redeployment panels which provide for the retention of a teacher in an existing school if a new post is not available within the agreed terms of the scheme.

The Government is committed to continuing to invest in education but we have to invest at a level that is consistent with what we can afford and what is sustainable given the economic circumstances. It is important that we explain the general background to the budget and how it affects this school and all other schools throughout the country. Therefore, stabilising the public finances is an essential first step in securing employment, future economic prosperity and ultimately the capacity to maintain public services, including education. By taking the necessary measures now, we will be well positioned to enable our country to take full advantage when the economic situation improves.

I have taken on board what the Deputy stated and if the school has a particular case with regard to language support I have no doubt it will be put to the Department in due course. I thank the Deputy for raising this matter.

The Dáil adjourned at 10.40 p.m. until 10.30 a.m. on Thursday, 11 December 2008.

Dáil Éireann debate - Wednesday, 10 Dec 2008