Taoiseach ‘thought Thurles would have done better’
There are 5,630 IDA-supported jobs throughout the county, but the Taoiseach admits he thought Thurles would have done better due to its proximity to the M8
The Taoiseach admits that he “often thought Thurles would have done better because of its location” when it comes to direct foreign investment, as allegations were made in the Dáil that the IDA has a “complete and total bias” towards Athlone rather than elsewhere in the midlands.
Responding, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that the skewed placement of IDA jobs has “happened a lot on the motorways in other areas…I often thought Thurles would have done better because of its location”.
“Not everywhere on the motorway has had quite the same degree of FDI [Foreign Direct Investment} as other places. It does need focus and attention”.
Figures released in January show that in the county, there are 5,630 IDA-supported jobs throughout the county, about on a par with Donegal and slightly behind Clare. On the higher end of the scale were Limerick with over 16,300 IDA-supported jobs, and Kildare with 10,258.
The highest numbers were in the counties with major cities like Dublin, Cork, and Galway, with 142,501 jobs, 51,425, and 25,430 respectively.
Politicians in the south of the county have often decried the absence of an anchor tenant at the IDA site in Clonmel, where 270 acres at the Ballingarrane estate were bought by Tipperary County Council in 2021 and the IDA subsequently purchased 50 of those acreas.
Although the site has planning permission for an extensive manufacturing facility, access to water and electrical services, the IDA has failed in the intervening 25 years to secure a tenant. Deputy Seamus Healy had urged the council to “ramp up” the marketing of the site urgently, particularly as there is already a business at the site, Questum an enterprise accelerator centre operated by the Technical University of the Shannon, with a number of incubation units and about 200 people employed.
"We already have in the area a number of flagship industries, including Abbott Vascular, Boston Scientific, and MSD Ballydine. The success of these industries should assist IDA Ireland in securing an anchor tenant for this site. Twenty-five years is far too long to wait”.