’Upgrade our roads or we’ll lose jobs’

‘Upgrade our roads or we’ll lose jobs’


Mayo industrialists to tell Cowen that poor roads will cause job losses

Michael Duffy

A DELEGATION of powerful chief executives from four of Mayo’s leading employers will meet with An Taoiseach Brian Cowen on Thursday with a simple message – improve the road infrastructure into the county or face the prospect of job losses.
Fianna Fáil TD Beverley Flynn has organised the deputation to press for the vital road funding so the future of some 9,000 jobs in the county can be put on a stronger footing.
Chief executives from Baxter in Castlebar, Allergan in Westport and Hollister and Ballina Beverages in Ballina, together with Mayo Industries Group (MIG) Chairman Seán Hannick, are due to outline to Mr Cowen the disadvantage they suffer because of poor road links between the west and Dublin.
In particular, they will be pressing for assurances on upgrading a 50km stretch of the N5 between Ballaghaderreen and Longford – the section of road which they claim is undermining their competitive ability to manufacture and export their products from Mayo.
“The Mayo Industries Group represents the manufacturing companies which employ 3,000 Mayo people directly and a further 6,000 in indirect employment. These companies are competing on international markets where cost containment is vital and where costs of production will ultimately decide whether they can continue to operate in Mayo or not,” said Deputy Flynn, who added that geographical location was a significant disadvantage for companies exporting on the world markets – particularly where the sub-standard N5 is driving up the cost of reaching customers.
“The poor road surface on this 50km stretch is adding excessively to the cost of transporting finished products from Mayo to Dublin. It costs Baxter an additional €400,000 a year to protect its products from being damaged on the road journey between Mayo and Longford. That is an expense which obviously cannot be sustained in a world economy where proximity to the market and razor-sharp distribution costs are a top priority.”
Mr Pat O’Donnell, Managing Director of Allergan Pharmaceuticals Ireland, told a joint committee meeting of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in Dáil Éireann recently of the urgent need among Mayo’s business community to have the road upgraded.
“My own boss in the US commented that if the N5 was improved, it would be an ideal opportunity for Allergan to consider further investment in Westport. The global sourcing director for Hollister has said the road between Longford and Ballina is worse than any road leading to the company’s plants around the world, including in India, and similar comments were made by the vice-president of manufacturing at Baxter. We are trying to encourage these people to make further investment in the area but they look upon it as a backwater by the time they get to Westport and Castlebar,” said Mr O’Donnell, who added that the companies in MIG are significant players in Mayo’s biggest towns and they are all well aware of their impact on the economy of the county.
“If one of these companies is lost, it will not be replaced and the IDA will confirm this for the committee. It would be almost impossible to replace a company providing between 800 and 1,000 jobs. Let us put the money into the infrastructure to retain the jobs we have. Let us try to build on that investment, move up the value chain and ensure the 9,000 jobs in place will be retained. If possible, let us try to build on them for the future.”
Deputy Flynn confirmed that she will make it clear to the Taoiseach of the vital importance of road links to the west. 
“Seventy-five containers a day travel from Ballina, carrying 60 per cent of the world’s entire coke concentrate. From Castlebar 70 per cent of Europe’s renal dialysis solutions is exported every day. One hundred per cent of the world’s Botox supply is exported from Westport. We must protect our existing jobs at this time when competitive pressure has never been greater and when global companies are being constantly drawn to locations where production costs are cheaper,” added the Castlebar-based deputy.