The Government's treatment of the Corrib gas field, and related off-shore discoveries, will be a test of its commitment to the development of the Border, Midland and West region. As things stand, the gas is likely to be brought ashore near Belmullet in Co Mayo by Enterprise Oil before being piped to Galway and then onwards to Dublin. Householders and industry in the main towns along the way may benefit from the gas discovery, which has an expected life span of 17 years. But other centres of population in Sligo, Roscommon and the border counties may be excluded from any economic benefit.
Decisions on the use of this natural resource will have long term implications for the development of the BMW region. The availability of gas would be a real incentive for energy-hungry industries to locate in the area and it could facilitate the emergence of a high-technology sector there. But a new energy source will not, of itself, compensate for years of government and administrative neglect. The Western Development Commission has estimated that it will require the early investment of about £4 billion in State funds to develop key access roads; to modernise water, sewage, electrical and telecommunications facilities and to upgrade the regional airports of Knock, Galway and Shannon.
A high proportion of industry in the BMW region is presently engaged in the production of textiles and clothing, along with food, wood and wood products and it is open to severe global competition. Productivity in the region amounts to only 60 per cent of the national average and must be restructured if Government plans for the revitalisation of the region are to be brought to fruition. That will also require diversification of the industrial base and the introduction of a greater percentage of high-technology enterprises.
The closure of the lingerie clothing firm, Warners, in Belmullet last week, with the loss of 114 jobs, provides an indication of the continuous threat that lies over the region. Earlier, Fruit of the Loom shut a number of its factories in Donegal. And there have been other, more modest closures, which have been no less devastating in small communities. This fragmented pattern adds emphasis to the demands by the Western Development Commission for a more co-ordinated approach to regional planning at civil and public servant level, particularly where infrastructure is concerned.
There are indications that ministers from the region have come to recognise the need for a co-ordinated approach in devising and implementing operational programmes for the area under the National Development Plan, 2000-2006. Details of those schemes are not likely to be agreed with the EU Commission until the autumn. But there are already signs of slippage in terms of necessary road developments.
Some important work has been done. The need to encourage "clustering" by small, sea-food enterprises in order to generate economies of scale, develop new products and create an efficient marketing system has been recognised. A similar approach will have to be adopted for meat processing and for other value-added food products. In that regard, the Western Development Commission has urged Government ministers and State agencies to adopt a focused approach to overall regional planning, including infrastructural, industrial and social development.