Important Tullamore meeting to focus on employment crisis in Offaly

AN important meeting will be held in Tullamore on Thursday to focus on the current employment crisis in Offaly.
The meeting will take place in the Bridge House Tullamore on Thursday 22nd June, and councillors and TDs will be in attendance.
Angry and frustrated councillors on Monday said the purpose of the meeting will be to try and forge a positive pathway towards job creation.
They pointed out that the government's decarbonisation programme has resulted in a haemorrhaging of jobs over the years in Offaly (especially in West Offaly) and these jobs are not being replaced by the much-publicised but glacially slow European Just Transition Fund.
Cllr Eamon Dooley told Monday's monthly meeting of Offaly County Council that the Just Transition Fund has been so far a bitter disappointment for the people of Offaly. He praised An Síolán, the community organisation in West Offaly which is organising Thursday's Bridge House meeting, for being proactive in the face of this disappointment. “I think it would be wise for us all to support An Síolán as much as we can. Just Transition might eventually deliver walking and cycle routes and rewetted bogs, but it's not producing the level of job creation that we need to replace the thousands of job losses because of the winding down of Bord na Móna and ESB sources of employment in the county.”
In a statement issued to the councillors, Brian Flynn, Chairperson of An Síolán, pointed out that An Síolán “has been evaluating the loss of employment in the county as a result of the decarbonisation of the electricity industry.”
Brian pointed out that while there are plans for extensive development of renewable energy projects across the county, “unfortunately these will have a negligible impact on employment and will in no way support the communities that were sustained by Bord Na Móna and the ESB for generations.”
Cllr Neil Feighery told Monday's meeting that in the past there had been hope for Just Transition in terms of job creation “but now there's just a feeling of disappointment. We should write to the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to come down to Offaly, see the situation on the ground and therefore fully comprehend the challenge that we are facing; a challenge that has been caused by the decarbonisation programme. As of now we don't believe that Just Transition is going to deliver what is required for the county.”
Cllr Liam Quinn pointed out that when community groups try to access Just Transition funds they find the paperwork “dreadfully cumbersome. These are voluntary groups and they are being asked for far too many details.”
A number of the councillors strongly criticised Bord na Móna for not being more communicative with the councillors. “If they were more transparent and helpful,” one of them remarked, “if they were more willing to work with the Councillors, then we'd be a lot less negative and critical.”
Cllr Peter Ormond said the recent closure of Derrinlough Briquette Factory near Birr was a big loss to the region. “West and South Offaly is now crying out for more jobs, factory type jobs, with good terms and conditions and good payslips. This is not happening. Local retailers will also suffer because of the closure of Derrinlough because the loss of 62 employees and 62 wages means the loss of customers.” Cllr Ormond added that the lack of factory-type employment in the region means more people are compelled to travel further afield for work. He said long commutes or people permanently leaving is not what the region needs.
Cllr John Leahy said Bord na Móna is not managing Lough Boora as well as it could. “Lough Boora used to have 100,000 visitors per annum. That number has dropped year on year, because of a lack of investment.
“We have been talking a lot about Just Transition since 2019,” continued Cllr Leahy, “but unfortunately the delivery of jobs on the ground just hasn't happened. We are seeing a huge void in West Offaly, which means more people are travelling long commutes to work or leaving the area completely. This represents a significant loss of revenue because more people are not spending in the local shops. What is needed is a factory of some sort, or a number of factories of a more modest size.”
Cllr Eddie Fitzpatrick said the county is suffering because of the job losses “and the new, replacement jobs which we have been looking for for years are not happening.” He added that it's sad to see former Bord na Móna rail tracks on the bogs being removed at the moment. Ann Dillon, Director of Services, told him the embankments will remain after the tracks are gone.
Cllr Noel Cribbin said Just Transition “is not for the ordinary fellow at all, which means that people just walk away from it. It's too complicated. The paperwork is too onerous. I am getting very disheartened with the whole thing.”
Cllr John Clendennen said the councillors' confidence and belief in Just Transition was “on the floor. We need to see industry, factories, decent payslips. I just don't see that happening at the moment. Unless we do see it happening then it is very hard to give confidence back to the communities. At the moment Just Transition simply looks like a €169 million spending spree by state agencies in things like walkways and bog rewetting. It's talking about three new electric buses and yet we don't have a network of adequate bus-stops in the county.”
He praised An Síolán for their initiative. “Hopefully with our support they will emulate the successful template of Ferbane Business Park, which was a community-driven jobs creator.”
Cllr Frank Moran pointed out that for two years he has been trying to get a response from Bord na Móna regarding a community project in Ballycumber, “but I have heard nothing from them. It is a total lack of respect.”
Cllr Seán O'Brien said young people currently sitting their Leaving Cert want to work and live in Offaly “but there is a doubt in their heads over whether this will be possible.” He added that he's suspicious about the proposed €15 million coming from Just Transition towards electric charging points. “I've a suspicion that when it comes to the electric charging points we are going to be dumped with stuff that is obsolete.”
In his statement to the councillors Brian Flynn said An Síolán is inviting “members of the Oireachtas and County Council to a presentation outlining our proposals for harnessing the development of renewable projects throughout the county to create genuine community led projects that will support the enterprise investment required to sustain our towns and villages into the future.
"As you are aware, Bord na Móna have plans to develop approximately 2,000 Megawatts of renewable generation in Offaly in the coming years. To place this in context, this is eight times the combined export capacity of Ferbane, Rhode and Shannonbridge power stations at peak production. Those stations supported over three and a half thousand jobs while the renewable projects of the future will have little or no workforce from the county.
“We urgently need to reimagine how these proposed renewable energy projects, which will generate billions in revenue, can better support the communities in which they are located.
"Our proposal for the development of community owned renewable projects, will ensure that a portion of the state owned lands currently being developed by Bord na Móna, can support the creation of the employment opportunities that the county urgently needs. The alternative is to see the energy projects on these formerly community owned peatlands being sold off to international investment funds to capitalise Bord na Móna's investment in their offshore wind energy strategy.
"An Síolán has been working with the local authority to explore possibilities of using community owned energy projects to fund enterprise creation based on the West Offaly Enterprise Fund model, which has created many job opportunities in this area.
“We would appreciate the opportunity to outline our proposals to the politicians of the county. While we welcome the promotion of sustainable energy projects, without the accompanying enterprise funding, we are unlikely to have sustainable communities into the future.
"While the timeline to address this issue is quite short, with a unified approach, it is possible to achieve our climate change obligations and sustain viable communities into the future supported by community owned energy projects.”
Cllr Dooley pointed out that these community owned energy projects could administer an Enterprise Fund which could be used to kickstart new businesses in the area. “This is what we did many years ago after the closure of the power station in Ferbane in the late '90s. Working with the ESB we created an Enterprise Fund which was then used to kickstart new businesses. This eventually led to Ferbane Business Park which now employs 126 people.”