Unemployment Continues To Rise In Thurles

See 11 month CSO Live Register figures for Co. Tipperary shown hereunder.

Live Register figures show an added increase of 13 persons for Thurles over the past 30 days, the only town in Tipperary to do so. This fact is according to CSO statistics uploaded today, using the search criteria; all ages; both sexes.

To further add to this dismal news, production at the Lisheen Mine mining site has closed with effect from December 1st 2015 last.  The Lisheen Mine, situated close to the village of Moyne, Thurles, previously employed up to 400 workers at any one time and now only 30 people will retain their jobs, temporarily acting as a closure team as the mine is wound down.

At a recent farewell gathering of workers addressed by Tipperary’s Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government Alan Kelly; the Minister publicly announced that ‘secret negotiations‘ were under way to provide further jobs on this now vacant Lisheen Mine site.  Mr Kelly stated, “The Lisheen site has all the necessary ingredients to be a key Green Energy Hub and the ‘Task Force’ established to oversee the post mine occupancy is currently working on this.”

However persons close to this now obsolete mining operation remain cynical claiming that, “The only likely Green Energy Hub which might take up residence on this site into the future is probably Premier Green Energy (PGE) latter which Mr Kelly has already announced on April 15th 2015 last, promising just 40 new jobs.”

This Green Energy operation referred to in the above statement is already located on the site of the former closed Thurles Sugar Factory, latter which shed its massive workforce back in 1989, decimating business in the town and surrounding areas.

While in opposition during November 2007, the same then only a Senator Mr Alan Kelly stated, and I quote; “Thurles has taken a severe hit over the last number of years since the closure of the Sugar Factory. It is now clear that we need direct Government intervention to address this problem and to safeguard the economic future of Thurles. It is fair to say that the manufacturing sector has been decimated in Thurles.”

Having viewed the November figures shown above one must ask,” Where are the promised 200 new jobs for Clonmel, Co. Tipperary; the 152 jobs at ABP Food Group and what progress to date has been made on the 300 new jobs promised in Cashel at the former long idle Johnson and Johnson plant on the Cahir Road”?

As for Thurles Town, we regret to report that we are now even more decimated in 2015 than we ever were in 2007, due solely to subjecting ourselves to governance by this outgoing Fine Gael / Labour Government.