Fine Gael TD for Dublin Fingal, Alan Farrell, has today (Thursday) expressed his disappointment at the news that Merck is to pull out of its facility in Swords between 2014 and 2017 with the loss of 570 jobs.
“My thoughts are with the Merck employees who have helped to make MSD the success it is and who are now facing redundancy. Merck is a major employer in the Dublin North constituency and this is a significant blow to the area.
“Ireland has become a global pharmaceutical hub and I am hopeful that a pharmaceutical company will be attracted by the skills and experience of the Merck staff and by their excellent facility in Swords. Merck has said it would work with the IDA to aggressively market the site and the facility so that a buyer can be found. I have requested an urgent meeting with the IDA in this regard.
“I am hopeful that the protracted time frame of Merck’s withdrawal from Swords will open an opportunity for a similar employer to step in and I will continue to work with the IDA and Enterprise Ireland to achieve this goal. I am confident about the attractiveness of the site and the opportunities there given the skilled nature of the staff preset.
“I strongly urge Minister Bruton and his Department to do all they can to ensure that alternate investors can be found in order to avail of the skills and experience of the Merck employees and with a view to securing re-employment for the staff who will be made redundant. I intend to request an urgent meeting with Minister Bruton to discuss the closure of this site and to give my assistance where I can in developing a strategy to help departing employees and in attracting prospective investors.”