Ireland must not be lured into a false sense of security by its reliance of foreign multinationals but instead should invest more in local indigenous industry, the new Bishop of Cork and Ross has warned.

Bishop Fintan Gavin told massgoers in Carrigaline on Saturday that he was deeply saddened to learn on Wednesday that pharmaceutical giant, Novartis was to lay off 320 staff at its nearby Ringaskiddy plant.

“My heart sank when like so many others I turned on the radio on Wednesday morning as details of the 320 job losses at Novartis, Ringaskiddy, emerged,” he told massgoers at the Church of St Mary and St John in Carrigaline.

“Every effort needs to be made by government and the IDA to minimise the job losses, to support those who will lose their jobs, and to seek alternative employers to invest in the site,” he added.

Bishop Gavin described the news as “a devastating blow to the employees, their families and to the wider community” particularly as it came suddenly and without any warning.

Foreign investment reliance

The unexpected nature of the announcement in particular was causing huge insecurity and uncertainty for those employed in Novartis but also those employed in the wider pharmaceutical industry in the Cork region.

“Carrigaline is just one of the communities now heavily dependent on the pharmaceutical sector and this announcement by Novartis highlights the danger of our dependence on global companies.

“As a nation of people, we have developed an enormous reliance on the pharmaceutical sector. These industries have provided and continue to provide a valued livelihood to thousands of our people.

“However, at the same time, we can easily forget that these industries and their parent companies are global businesses: researching, producing and competing in a global market.

“As a nation, we need to ensure that our reliance on foreign direct investment does not lure us into a false sense of security. We need to invest more in our local indigenous industries and innovations.”

Bishop Gavin said that unexpected announcements, such as that made by Novartis on Wednesday, highlights just how the parish serves as “an anchor” for the local community in such times.

“News like we received out-of-the-blue from Novartis reminds us that, as local communities, we need to strengthen our ties with neighbours and friends, always aware of who is beside us and of their needs.

“As parishes, we have a strong tradition of supporting people and families in times of worry and need. We will continue to do this,” said Bishop Gavin, adding that Carrigaline was “a very strong parish-faith community”.

Building closure

On Wednesday morning Novartis Ringaskiddy Ltd Managing Director, Shane Relihan broke to the news to staff at a meeting in the canteen that it was seeking 240 redundancies at its Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) plant.

And Mr Relihan announced there would be a further 80 redundancies in the companies the Global Service Centre also on the Ringaskiddy campus with these redundancies to start in mid-2020 and finish by the end of 2021

Meanwhile, the 240 redundancies at the API plant stem from Novartis’s decision to consolidate its API manufacturing operations at the campus, resulting in the closure of one of its production buildings by mid 2022.