merrion street

Clearly my first thoughts are with the workers in Swords and their families as they face uncertainty after today’s announcement.

Today’s announcement in no way reflects the quality of operations or the workforce in Ireland, but relates to a consolidation the company is engaged in globally to deal with excess capacity following the purchase of Schering Plough.

The company and IDA will work aggressively to market this site, which has a number of factors which make it attractive for potential purchasers as a going concern – including a strongly committed workforce, significant global demand for its technologies and a long lead-in time of over four years until the site is scheduled to be wound down.

All the supports of the State will be made available to workers affected, and I note that the company has also pledged to support its employees.

There are several recent examples of successes in selling sites as going concerns in the pharma sector in Ireland – GSK/Stiefel in Sligo, Pfizer/Amgen in Dun Laoghaire. It is also important to remember stories such as Eishtec/Talk Talk in Waterford.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Despite global difficulties, employment in the pharma sector has remained steady in Ireland over recent years. This is a dynamic sector worldwide and significant fresh investment in the sector is underway and several other pharmaceutical projects are currently in play and being pursued aggressively by Ireland.

Across the economy, Government is in a constant battle to retain the employment we have and create new employment. Figures released by CSO this week show that trends are positive, with 58,000 additional people at work over the past year, and the IDA sector is adding over 6,000 jobs per year. However none of this is easily won and requires constant work by Government, agencies, enterprises and workers.