Ahern confident on Pfizer plants

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has indicated that he is confident that US drugs multinational Pfizer will secure buyers for two of its plants in Cork, where close to 500 jobs are currently at risk. Kathryn Hayesreports.

The company announced this week that it would make 65 workers in Ringaskiddy redundant by the end of the year. The group also wants to sell off part of its plant at Loughbeg, which employs 300 people, and part of its Little Island plant, where 180 people are employed.

Speaking during a visit to Limerick yesterday the Taoiseach revealed that interest was "good" in the sale of the plants and added that the company had been successful in selling some of its plants previously. "We'll work for the staff and try to get them re-employed and work to ensure that there's a successful sale but I understand that the interest in that could be good."

Mr Ahern described the loss of 65 jobs in Ringaskiddy as "small" compared to the 10,000 jobs Pfizer plans to cut globally and stressed that we "need to keep this very much in perspective".

"Of course it's always a worry for workers about what might happen. But these are very big plants, very modern plants and a lot of investment has gone into them. The big issue for us now is that they are going to sell these plants and I understand the company has been very good at selling some of their plants previously," he said.

Mr Ahern insisted that pharmaceutical companies were doing "extraordinarily" well despite Pfizer's announcement, but added that these companies were "only as good as their last success. Pfizer has lost a billion on a drug trial that didn't get the authorisation they wanted, so this is nothing to do with Irish competitiveness."

He was speaking during a visit to Unigolf, situated at the National Technology Park in Limerick, where 43 new jobs were announced yesterday. The in- door golf facility and teaching academy is located in the University Business Complex where 155 more jobs are due to be created over the next two years.

Last week in Limerick Thomson Scientific announced the loss of 200 jobs.