We hear much talk about rural Ireland and about the need to bring employment to, and create opportunities in, rural Ireland but invariably Government and State interventions are becoming more negative and damaging by the day. The sharpest illustration of this in the past week or so has been the announcement by Bord na Móna to close the Littleton peat briquette factory. Politicians often wonder why people become disillusioned with the State and the political system. The manner in which this closure is being brought about would give those politicians some answers. I refer to the shabby manner in which the workers have been treated, the lack of dignity shown to them, the false promises and the fact there was no plan, agreement or deep consultation.

Bord na Móna was primarily founded to give employment to people in the midlands, to this part of Tipperary and to other counties, and to create economic development. Now the State is turning its back. I mentioned people's cynicism and disillusionment because two years ago at a meeting of the workers, the then Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, announced to them that there would be a combined investment in a new combined heat and power plant at Littleton.

Yes, he did.

He announced it. Word has it he picked it up from the chief executive officer on the way down and said he would announce it that night.

That happened more than once.

To be fair to Deputy Lowry at the time, he suggested the announcement was premature but that was very robustly refuted by the then Minister, Deputy Kelly. The workers thought things were going to be sound for the next ten years. To be fair, the chief executive at the time did not suggest there were any prospects of the factory closing. At an Oireachtas joint committee meeting of May 2015, the chief executive officer spoke of an investment of approximately €10 million to convert both plants - those in Tipperary and Offaly - to 50% peat and 50% biomass, and that this would be a long-term project. No wonder people become cynical and disillusioned when they are treated in such a way. The workers should be treated with respect and dignity. We are talking about third and fourth generation families now involved with these plants.

Deputies met the Minister, Deputy Naughten, recently and the workers want the closure date extended to a minimum of 2020. The redundancy package is unacceptable as this is compulsory redundancy rather than voluntary redundancy. The longer one worked in the plant, the more one is punished by the redundancy package. There should be significant retraining opportunities provided to the workers. The carbon tax has been doubled and the exemption for peat was removed by the last Government; this money should be put into a fund for enterprise and employment opportunities in these regions that have been so badly affected by this announcement.

I can agree with Deputy Martin when he says workers should be treated with dignity and respect, as they should be. This decision, however, was made by a commercial semi-State body and it is not the subject of direct instruction from the Government. If I am correct, my understanding is a very substantial amount of briquettes are unsold because of the change in the nature of the way things are now. This decision has been pondered for some time.

The Deputy states the redundancy package is not acceptable and I do not have the details of what that means. In respect of workers being treated properly with dignity and respect, I share the Deputy's view completely. Deputy Martin will appreciate that Bord na Móna is phasing out the manufacturing of peat briquettes over the next number of years. There was the closure of the Bellacorick station quite a number of years ago, as well as a number of others in the midlands, as a result either of the bogs being cut away or very little being left, leading to a change of use either for hospitality or tourism purposes. Other issues have also been introduced. The facts and figures with respect to these two plants led to the board decision to close one; this was made on the basis of projections and so on. That does not mean the workers should not be treated with dignity and respect, as they should be. I hope they will be. If the issue is they are not being treated appropriately, it is a matter for the board. I hope it hears this message.

With respect to what the former Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, committed to with a combined heat and power process at Littleton, I do not speak for promises made by him. Maybe in a moment of being overly enthusiastic as to what might be-----

There have been a few of those.

AK47.

In any event, it has not come true. I share the Deputy's view about dignity and respect. A substantial amount of product has not been sold, which is a clear issue. It is determined in part by the change in the nature of the way fossil fuels are treated and the new methods of energy use for domestic houses and commercial premises.

The then Minister, Deputy Alan Kelly, was a member of the Taoiseach's Government.

I know.

The point is serious promises were made that there would be €25 million in investment for a combined heat and power plant.

An article on tippfm.com on 5 June 2015 stated:

Funding and a fuel supply will have to be sourced before the combined heat and power plant can go to planning. [It had not even gone for planning permission or anything like it]. Because of this Deputy Lowry says Minister Kelly's announcement was premature. The Environment Minister was quick to refute Deputy Lowry's comments. However they did both agree that the investment was ultimately good news for Littleton and Tipperary.

We wonder why people are so cynical about the political system and so on, but it seems, two years on, that there was never going to be a combined heat and power plant.

Never.

We need answers. The workers were as a consequence led down a false path.

Fantasy land.

I met them last night. They thought their jobs were secure as they had been given commitments. Bord na Móna is a Government agency. It was always an agent of the State to make sure there would be economic development in the regions, particularly those which did not enjoy significant foreign direct investment or other forms of economic development. Lisheen mines were closed. There has been a series of job losses in the Tipperary region, including, for example, at Procter and Gamble and this is a further body blow. There is a need for the Taoiseach, the Government and Bord na Móna to engage properly with the workers to extend the closure date and secure a proper redundancy package and proper economic opportunities in the region for them because they have been let down badly.

Derrinlough was chosen as the sole location for future peat briquette production and the new biomass briquette plant. The review of peat operations was prompted by the very significant decline in sales in the past few years. If the product is being produced but not sold and there is no capacity to sell it, it just sits there. That is not the way it should be. Increased competition, consumer trends, lower oil prices, carbon tax and other factors have all resulted in a serious drop in sales in the past four years. There has been no date determined for closure. There is to be an orderly wind down and the opportunity to engage in new training and acquire new skills or other options for the staff who work in Littleton. When the review was concluded, it was stated that in order to sustain the business in the future the Derrinlough plant, at which 61 people are employed, would be the optimum location for future investment to secure the future of the fuels business. The head of Bord na Móna fuels said:

This has been a very difficult decision following a period of uncertainty for employees. We took a great deal of care with this review to ensure that a wide range of factors were taken into account. Briquette sales have declined significantly in the past few years as we have encountered unprecedented market, financial and regulatory challenges. Ultimately we had to make a decision.

I take the Deputy's point. Bord na Móna is engaging with the employees. I hope it will take on board the view of this House that all of the workers should be treated with respect and dignity and that all options for them should be explored thoroughly, as I would expect Bord na Móna to do in the time ahead. I will not comment any further on the commitment entered into by the former Minister.

The Taoiseach has not done that.

He has tabled it as a Topical Issue for discussion later today.

Perhaps in a moment of exuberance-----

Did the Taoiseach say the date had not been determined?

A date has not been determined. It wants an orderly wind down in order that it can engage with the employees on other options, training, new skills, etc.