THE GOVERNMENT should rectify the regional imbalance between east and west as a matter of urgency, Friends First chief economist Jim Power has said.
Speaking after the publication of a report on the issue in Galway yesterday, Mr Power said there was a compelling case for the creation of a regional economic development section within the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
The west’s reliance on construction, manufacturing and agriculture – all under pressure in the current downturn – meant there was a distinct danger of a continuously widening imbalance, he said. Preventative measures must be taken to protect existing employment and stimulate new jobs.
The assessment, commissioned by the Friends First west region, examines the effect the boom has had on the socioeconomic fabric of Counties Donegal, Leitrim, Sligo, Mayo, Roscommon, Longford, Offaly, Galway and Westmeath.
It mirrors many findings of a Western Development Commission study on the economic disparity between east and west a decade ago. "One of the scary aspects has been the fact that the imbalance did not narrow during the boom years," Mr Power told The Irish Times. "These regional imbalances and disparities are now being seriously exposed by the savage recession. It is critical that infrastructural developments are not delayed or postponed despite the challenging economic conditions."
The study identifies specific projects, such as completion of the inter-urban motorway network by 2010 and a “radical” improvement in rail services. Funding of essential capital works at the six regional airports was deemed necessary, along with upgrading the N5 to protect 9,000 manufacturing jobs.
Energy provision was also “vitally important for the region”, he said. “There is an opportunity to extend the 220KV line from Sligo to Ballina, Castlebar, Westport and on to Galway, and to provide a strategic gas route through Connacht to service Knock airport, Ballaghaderreen, Carrick-on-Shannon, Boyle, Sligo and into Donegal.” Broadband availability also needed to be improved, he said.
“IDA-supported employment in the midlands, northwest/Donegal and the west accounts for just 16.7 per cent of total employment by IDA-supported companies in the country.” The report identified the midlands region as having the lowest level of disposable income in the State.
