The announcement by Supervalu of the closure of the Clonmel store at Market Place is dreadful news for the 44 employees and their families coming up to Christmas. It follows equally devastating news for the families affected by the Caulfield SUPERVALU closure in Tipperary Town last month.
The workers and their union must be supported in their call for a fully satisfactory redundancy and redeployment settlement.
The company has cited a “drop in footfall” as a significant factor in the closure while the Mandate Trade Union, representing the workers, has cited a lack
of disposable income among workers and unemployed.
Austerity measures, involving the extraction of billions out of the economy of by successive governments in recent years, is the fundamental cause of this closure.
Disposable income in Co Tipperary is 5% below the national average and 16% below that in Dublin. The so-called recovery is mainly based in the big cities and has been directed into the pockets of the very rich who have no need to spend the extra money in our shops.
The reduction in unemployment is lagging 4% below the national average in Co Tipperary
Not 1 cent of 150 million to be spent on IDA advance factories and offices to be spent in Ireland over the next five years is to be spent in Co Tipperary!!!
Recent job announcements are barely sufficient to compensate for the nett 321 IDA jobs which were were lost in Co Tipperary over the last 3 years.
94% of all jobs created last year were in the Dublin area Tipperary needs a fair share of the IDA funding and there is a need for more spending on roads, house building and other infrastructure in the county.
The 15 million cut in Leader funding in the County must be restored.
Seamus Healy TD 087-2802199
Seamus Healy T.D. welcomes today’s announcement by Eirgrid that it will not now be proceeding with overhead lines on the Grid Link Project from Cork to Kildare, which was proposed to go through Tipperary.
We do, however, need to stay vigilant until there is further clarification of the alternatives being proposed, he stated.
8 October 2015
Dear Deputy
In September, we submitted a Report on the Grid Link project to the Government-appointed Independent Expert Panel.
Today, the Independent Expert Panel issued its review of our Report.
Our report sets out equal analysis of three options which meet the need of the Grid Link Project- an overhead, underground and ‘Regional Option’. The ‘Regional Option’ uses technology which is capable of strengthening the existing grid in the region without building additional overhead infrastructure.
We first detailed the ‘Regional Option’ in March 2015, in our ‘Your Grid Your Views’ draft grid development strategy. It uses a technology known as ‘series compensation’, the first time this will be deployed on the Irish transmission grid. It is an advanced, smart grid technology that will enable more power to flow through existing lines, and so does not require new 400 kV overhead lines. To complete this solution, an underwater cable across the Shannon estuary is required in addition to some upgrade works to existing transmission lines.
Our Report on the Grid Link Project recommended pursuing this option, as it is stronger across the technical, environmental and economic criteria outlined on our report. The Panel are satisfied that no further analysis of the overhead and underground solutions is required.
We will now be moving ahead to develop the Regional Option.
A summary of our report on the Grid Link Project to the Independent Expert Panel can be found here. The report itself is available at this link.
For further information please contact us on 01 2370479 or by emailing us at oireachtas@eirgrid.com.
Kind regards
Fintan
______________
Fintan Slye
Chief Executive, EirGrid
EirGrid plc – Transmission System Operator, Ireland.
The Oval, 160 Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.
Oibritheoir Eangach Leictreachais na hÉireann.
160 Bóthar Shíol Bhroin, Droichead na Dothra, Baile Átha Cliath 4.
Registered Office
The Oval, 160 Shelbourne Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4.
Registered in Ireland No. 338522 V.A.T. No. IE 6358522H
TELEPHONE + 353 (0)1 677 1700
EMAIL info@eirgrid.com
FAX + 353 (0)1 661 5375
WEB www.eirgrid.com
Directors:
John O’Connor CHAIRPERSON, Fintan Slye CHIEF EXECUTIVE
Doireann Barry, Dr. Gary Healy, Liam O’Halloran, Bride Rosney, Dr. Joan Smyth, Richard Sterling, Gerry Walsh, Michael Hand, Niamh Cahill (Company Secretary).
The announcement of 200 jobs for Clonmel is welcome but more needs to be done and done urgently said Deputy Seamus Healy in a statement.
Tipperary has not been getting its fair share of job creation.
The County has unemployment levels of 18%, twice the national average, with 14,400 people signing on. Towns across the County are blighted by unemployment with over 25% unemployment in the towns of Carrick-on-Suir, Tipperary, Thurles, Roscrea and Nenagh.
This announcement comes in the wake of a litany of job losses, 200 at Intellicom, 50 at Grants and more at C & C, Gleeson’s, Abbott and Boston Scientific.
The County also lost a nett 321 IDA jobs in the 2 years to 31/12/2014.
Tipperary has not been getting its fair share of job creation with 90% of job announcements going to the east coast and the cities of Cork, Limerick and Galway.
The Government’s regional jobs strategy announced yesterday adds insult to injury. It prioritises investment in named towns Sligo, Tralee, Castlebar, Galway, Dundalk, Limerick, Athlone, Carlow and Waterford.
There is not a single Tipperary Town on the list.
In the South East the strategy prioritises Waterford and Carlow for investment for building advance manufacturing and office facilities
This doubly disadvantages all Tipperary Towns and must be changed.
Tipperary’s Ministers Alan Kelly and Tom Hayes need to step up to the mark and demand fair play and a fair share of job creation for County Tipperary Towns.
Seamus Healy TD
Tel: 087-2802199
08/09/15
Workers & Unemployed Action 