INISHOWEN TD Charlie
McConalogue has called on the Minister for Jobs,
Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton to step in
to save the Regional IDA office in Donegal.
“The Government was forced to admit last week that
the Regional IDA office in Letterkenny is shutting
down, with services to be transferred to Sligo.
There are now real concerns that, at a time when job
creation should be of paramount importance, Donegal
will be left behind," said Deputy McConalogue.
“I am now calling on Minister Richard Bruton to seek
an urgent meeting with the IDA to have this damaging
decision reversed. Minister Bruton must also urge
IDA management to fill the position of North West
regional manager without delay. This is a critical
role for promoting Donegal as a destination for jobs
and investment and can’t be left vacant any longer."
He said it was not good enough for the Government to
"hide behind" the independence of the IDA "and claim
their decisions are nothing to do with him".
"It’s time for Minister Bruton to take an interest
in what is happening in the North West and ensure
that the key enterprise agency, the IDA, has
sufficient resources to compete for investment in
our region.
“The bottom line is that in order to keep jobs in
Donegal we need to ensure that our county’s
interests are represented when key investment
decisions are made. The ultimate responsibility for
this lies with Minister Bruton and he can’t continue
to shrug this duty to the real detriment of
Donegal.” |
