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Donegal unemployment levels "so
bleak"
21.06.17
BREXIT will
'disproportionately affect' border counties like
Donegal which already has six unemployment
blackspots, a TD has said.
Deputy Charlie McConalogue said the region had
consistently been "neglected" by the current
administration leading to a two-tier recovery.
“The border area has never been a priority for this
Government, and it is only following Britain’s
decision to leave the EU that the region has begun
to feature on the Government’s agenda.
"Since 2012 there have been 27 IDA site visits in
Donegal - that’s out of a total of 2,439 nationally.
Those figures speak for themselves and are a damning
indictment of Fine Gael’s neglect of the region," he
said. |
“The latest Census 2016
data identifies six unemployment blackspots in the
county, including Letterkenny, Raphoe and Gortahork,
with unemployment rates varying from 27% to 35%.
These levels of unemployment are particularly
worrying – and are further evidence of the two-tier
recovery which Fine Gael has presided over in the
last six years."
The Inishowen-based FF deputy, said Brexit posed
enormous risks for Ireland generally and the border
region in particular.
“The fallout from Brexit is the biggest challenge
this country has faced in a generation and the
border region will be disproportionately affected. |
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Deputy Charlie McConalogue. |
While the decision by
the Taoiseach to assign special responsibility for
Brexit to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Simon
Coveney is welcome, it doesn’t fully recognise the
enormity of the task ahead of us, especially here in
the border region.
“With the unemployment situation so bleak in parts
of Donegal, it is imperative that the Government
comes up with a strategy to limit any further
deterioration of the situation and to put supports
in place for small businesses and entrepreneurs,
which have the potential to create local jobs," he
added. |
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