Business
Councillor claims Tuam is dying on its feet
By Declan Tierney
The town of Tuam is dying on its feet . . . this was the claim made by a local town councillor and prominent businessman as he vowed to try and bring in a new industry.
And Cllr Paul O’Grady, auctioneer and former President of the Vintners Federation, believes that the key to a renaissance could be an IDA advance factory on a 30 acre field on the outskirts of the town which is already in their ownership.
He said that things were so bad in Tuam that even the number of priests in the town was decreasing as one of the three was being relocated to Castlebar.
“The town is dying,” Cllr O’Grady declared. “If you drive through the centre of Tuam you will find that half of the shops are closed and there are more to follow”.
He acknowledge the presence of major employers like Valeo and Transitions Optical which he said provided vital employment for Tuam – but there was need for another major industry, he said.
He referred to the fact that the IDA had a 30 acre site on the outskirts of the town which had not been developed. “Let them build an advance factory and we will get the industry to occupy it,” he promised.
Cllr O’Grady said that, in the past, the town had rallied to secure employment and would do so again if the infrastructure was provided to allow this to happen.
“People who pass through this town think half of the businesses are closed”, he said and then referred to a number of pubs that had shut down as well as a number of smaller retail outlets which have ceased trading.
He added: “One of the big problems with Tuam is that it does not have any of the major retail players. There is no Dunnes Stores or no Tesco. There should be room for everyone in a town the size of this.
“We are suffering because of it. A number of pubs in this town have closed down and come the end of the summer, more of them will close their doors because it is not viable for them to remain open”.
Cllr O’Grady then promised that he was going to take the matter to Jobs Minister Richard Bruton and would pester him until he approved the construction of an advance factory for Tuam.
He was supported by Cllr Mary Loftus who said that the streets of Tuam were vacant at the weekends and the town had been suffering badly for the past five years.
She then took a swipe at Tuam Chamber of Commerce who she accused of coming up with “ridiculous suggestions” in the past that had not benefited the town.
Connacht Tribune
New President for Local Ireland
The new President of Local Ireland, the association representing local news publishers around the country, is Head of Irish Times Regionals Dan Linehan.
Mr Linehan takes over the presidency from Declan McGuire of the Connacht Tribune. His appointment was confirmed at the recent Annual General Meeting of Local Ireland at Bloomfield House Hotel near Mullingar, Westmeath.
Mr Linehan, who has served as Vice President of the organisation for the last two years, said: “The coming years are a very important time for local publishers with many important issues to be addressed, including the implementation of the Future of Media Commission recommendations, defamation reform, the role and support for local publishers in public service reporting and helping publishers develop commercial digital offerings.”
Speaking at the AGM, Mr McGuire acknowledged the work done by the Executive in the past two years under the direction of Executive Director, Bob Hughes, on several projects related to the publishing industry but most especially the successful conclusion of the long-running campaign for the abolition of VAT on newspapers.
He also wished Mr Linehan the very best in his new role as President of the association for the next two years.
Mr Hughes thanked Mr McGuire for his leadership and support during his term of office and said he looked forward to working with Mr Linehan on the key policy priorities for the association, including Government supports, Government advertising, fair remuneration for content from the tech platforms and the reform of the legislation for defamation.
Local Ireland members also elected Seán Mahon, Managing Director of the Southern Star, as Vice President for the next two years.
Connacht Tribune
Employers’ group hears of key challenges facing businesses in the region
The shortage of affordable housing is the single biggest impediment in attracting and retaining workers in the West, according to business group Ibec.
At a ‘Regional Insights Series’ meeting in the Galmont Hotel in Galway last week, employers were told that capacity constraints and labour supply are the key challenges facing business growth in the region.
Ibec Head of Regional Policy Helen Leahy said: “There must be greater focus by government on enhancing quality of life issues such as housing and infrastructure which are driving labour shortages in the region.
“Ibec’s vision for the West is to realise its potential to become a globally competitive location. An inadequate supply of affordable housing is now the single largest impediment to attracting and retaining talented workers, without whom business investment and expansions are not possible.
“Labour shortages are a real concern for businesses in the region. People decide where to live and work based on quality of life and access to high quality services and amenities. Industry tends to follow talent, and in this regard, the region needs to have all the building blocks in place as the attraction and retention of world-class talent becomes increasingly competitive on a global level,” said Ms Leahy.
Amongst Ibec’s priorities for the West are:
- Addressing housing and infrastructure challenges
- Transitioning towards a new growth model with Net Zero energy powered by Atlantic offshore wind resources
- Adapting businesses to the new economic realities
- Enhancing capacity and skillsets to achieve sustainable development objectives
- Investment in people and skills
- Creating competitive advantage through digitalisation
- Innovation as a key driver of productivity growth
Connacht Tribune
Survey finds one in five retailers in Galway want to go fully cashless
One in five Galway businesses want to go fully cashless, as the move towards card payments and tapping continues unabated post-Covid.
In all, 22% of Galway businesses would like to be fully cashless, according to a survey carried out by BOI Payment Acceptance (BOIPA), a provider of payment technology solutions, which asked Irish businesses about the current payment landscape as well as business confidence and concerns.
Over one-third (36%) of Galway businesses were unaware there is no contactless limit on mobile wallets – just below the national average – while 54% believe the increase in card over cash transactions has helped them run their business.
Six out of ten Galway businesses expect to grow this year despite the cost-of-living crisis and running costs dominating as key concerns; 62% believe their business will grow over the next twelve months despite global economic uncertainty.
Unsurprisingly cost-of-living increases and running costs were the main concerns the majority of businesses had.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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