The Clare People Archive

CASHING in on the ‘Shannon’ brand that is instantly recognizable around the world is the way forward for the region, Shannon Development chief executive, Dr Vincent Cunnane has said following the publication of the company’s annual report.

“The ‘Shannon’ brand is instantly recognised internationally and is synonymous with innovation and entrepreneurship, due in no small part to the many ‘world firsts’ that were born at Shannon over the years,” said Dr Cunnane.

“For example the world’s first tax free zone in the modern era was developed here,” Dr. Cunnane added.

Shannon’s international reputation was further enhanced with the visit in February 2012 of the Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping.

“We were honoured to be invited to brief the Chinese Vice President and his delegation on all aspects of Shannon Development’s regional economic development remit and particularly on activities at Shannon Free Zone,” said Dr Cunnane.

“Our objective in briefing Mr Xi was to create the environent to enhance good relations between Irish and Chinese businesses and to highlight Shannon as an ideal gateway location for Chinese businesses wish- ing to trade in Europe,” he added.

This message was further delivered when Dr Cunnane was a guest speaker at the China Civil Aviation Development Forum in Beijing.

China will invest over $230bn in the aviation sector in the next five years and, during his visit to China, Dr Cunnane met with senior man- agement from the Civil Aviation Administration of China and a number of Chinese airlines, cargo operators and Chinese airport chief executives to explore potential business opportunities for Shannon.

“I was delighted to have been invited to speak at the prestigious Chinese Civil Aviation Development Forum. I was asked to address the Forum on how an airport can successfully enhance local and regional economies. Over 750 top aviation industry influencers from China and around the world were assembled. It was a unique opportunity to promote Shannon,” said Dr Cunnane.

The linkages between Shannon Development and China began in the 1980s when Mr Jiang Zemin, who was then Senior Vice Minister of State Imports and Exports Administration and later became President of China, led a Chinese government delegation to Shannon to study our Shannon Free Zone and the Shannon Development ‘model’ of a regional development company.

The knowledge gained by the Chinese delegation was subsequently used in the development of China’s very successful Special Economic Zones.

The Chinese government initially opened four Special Economic Zones based on the Shannon model, which were extremely successful in attracting foreign investment, stimulating trade and invigorating growth.

“The zones became a major driver for China’s economy, allowing private investment to flow into the country underpinned by a significant transfer of skills and technology. There are now several hundred such zones all over China. Shannon Development is very proud to have been associated with such major innovation,” said the Shannon Development report.

EMPLOYMENT numbers at the Shannon Development managed Free Zone dropped by three per cent in 2011 as the company grappled with the demands of the economic recession, but there are still over 7,700 working in the industrial estate.

The Shannon Development annual report shows that employment numbers were boosted by 406 over the past year, which when measured against job losses of 580 over the same period meant that there was a net loss of 174 for the year.

“Shannon Free Zone is home to over 100 companies and generating almost € 3 billion in annual sales, more than 90 per cent of which are to export markets.

“Despite the economic downturn, Shannon Free Zone continues to be a strong revenue generator for the local economy.

Companies based at the Free Zone collectively contribute over € 600 million to the Irish and Shannon region economies annually in areas such as staff payroll, materials and services.

“While overall employment at the Zone fell 3 per cent year on year, it should be noted that almost 90 per cent of these job losses were the result of downsizing and not closures, enabling Shannon Development to continue working with these companies to identify new market opportunities. The company is encouraged by the slowdown in job losses, reporting a net loss of 174 jobs during the year. Jobs in indigenous companies at Shannon Free Zone continued to grow in 2011, in the past two years indigenous jobs have increased by over 10 per cent from 949 to 1,045,” the annual report adds.

Among the job highlights in 2011 was the announcement by Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton of 170 new jobs to be created through a joint partnership between US company ZAGG International Distribution Ltd and Irish company CREGG Logistics.

The jobs are supported by Shannon Development and ZAGG is confident of creating a further 130 jobs over the next four years.

In addition, Bustec, the Shannon Free Zone-based technology firm, announced a $21 million (€ 15 million) contract with US technology firm Lockheed Martin to supply data capture and testing equipment which will be used by the US Navy.

“Considerable progress was made on marketing the Free Zone to potential overseas investors in 2011,” says the annual report.

During the year, Shannon Development succeeded in securing 19 itineraries from prospective new clients for the Shannon Free Zone, seven of which were generated in partnership with IDA Ireland.

“Shannon Development approved financial supports to Shannon Free Zone companies in 2011, which leveraged investments of € 13 million by these companies. A total of 20 Shannon Free Zone companies received Shannon Development support packages across key areas such as R&D, employment, management development, international marketing supports and training.

“These supports illustrate Shannon Development’s commitment to enable Free Zone companies maintain market leadership and underpins their future growth and success,” the reports adds.

IT’S as you were for Shannon Development as the agency that has been the economic driver for the mid-west region since 1959 prepares for the future, despite the uncertainty surrounding its role in the wake of the Government decision to change the company’s remit as part of creating a new model for Shannon Airport.

Chief executive Dr Vincent Cunnane has spoken confidently about the company carving a new niche for itself in the region, but has admitted to “uncertainty” about what its new remit will be over the next year.

“It is a period of uncertainty for Shannon Development, but in a way, we always have had uncertainty”, admitted Dr Cunnane. “Uncertainty is not a good environment in which to work but it’s business as usual as much as we can. That’s our mantra since these announcements.

“It’s business as usual until something officially changes. Nothing has been officially changed, nothing is before the Government and we will continue to do our job in the professional manner we have always done it and yield good results in difficult times,” he added.

In June this year a steering group was appointed to oversee the Government decision to merge Shannon Airport with Shannon Development to form a new entity with a commercial mandate in public ownership.

As part of this, Shannon Development’s functions in relation to indigenous enterprise, foreign direct investment and tourism are to transfer to the national agencies.

Commenting further, the Shannon Development chief said, “Shannon Development staff will continue to provide a range of services to all their clients. We are in touch with our clients to assure them that our service levels will be unaffected during the interim period and that staff will continue to deliver the high level of service that clients have come to expect.”

“Shannon Development is working closely with the Government steering group and is represented on the working groups of the two task forces set up to look at the aviation development and the change management dimensions of the decision,” said Shannon Development chairman John Brassil.

“A successful Shannon Airport is vital to secure the future economic success of the region. Therefore it is crucial that the blueprint being developed for it is fit for purpose and utilises the unique experience and skills set of Shannon Development and Shannon Airport staff to plot its course and deliver the next generation of world firsts,” he added.

SHANNON Development has stated that plans to develop a major new visitor attraction in Bunratty are still in the pipeline, with the company’s annual report revealing that the campaign to secure expressions of interest for the multi-million euro project is ongoing.

“Shannon Development is seeking expressions of interest for a major new international visitor attraction on its 120-acre landbank next to the world famous Bunratty Castle and Folk Park,” the report reveals.

“Research carried out by Shannon Development identified a number of possible suitable projects for the site, among them a diaspora visitor centre and genealogy centre, and a themed family adventure park,” it adds.

The deadline for expressions of interest for the project was extended earlier this year as part of Shannon Development’s attempts to spark interest in a multi-national investor coming on board to develop the project.

It was originally intended that the closing date for submission to the regional development agency would be the end of March, but in extending this deadline chief executive Dr Vincent Cunnane said, “additional time is required” because of the sig- nificant “nature of the project” that would be one of the largest to be undertaken under Shannon Development’s watch in decades.

“While the money may not be in Ireland, there is money elsewhere and the best value can be had at this point in time,” Dr Cunnane said.

This project has its genesis in a 2009 Clare County Council decision through the South Clare Local Area Plan to pave the way for the development of visitor facilities on the Shannon Development-owned site.

Shannon Development subsequently revealed that “informal discussions with Clare County Council indicated that they would welcome a tourism related planning application for this strategic site”.

In tender documents for the development of the site adjacent to Bunratty Castle, Shannon Development have highlighted gaps in the market that can be filled Bunratty – 50 years on from the start of medieval banquets in Bunratty Castle.

One of the proposals is to develop an Ireland Through the Ages History and Cultural Centre incorporating a diaspora visitor centre and genealogy centre.

“It is estimated that the size of the available market for cultural tourism in Ireland from main source markets of Britain, United States, France and Germany to be of the order of € 65 million,” the tender documents stated.

“The preferred option for Shannon Development is to enter into a development and management agreement with a preferred party for the development and operation of the new attraction,” the documents added.

Earlier this year, Dr Cunnane stated that the project “represents a unique opportunity beside an existing tourism attraction visited by 400,000 people per annum, adjacent to Shannon Airport and two hours by motorway from Dublin.

“We are hopeful that something very significant will happen at Bunratty. I’m confident that we will receive several expressions of interest,” he added.

SHANNON Development’s work as a driver for tourism in the mid-west is being rewarded with the results of increased numbers into region over the past year.

That’s the message delivered by Shannon Development chief executive Dr Vincent Cunnane following the publication of the company’s annual report last week.

Preliminary tourism figures from Fáilte Ireland for 2011 indicate that the Shannon region was one of Ire- land’s top performing areas in terms of the growth of international visitor numbers.

The region recorded 850,000 overseas visitors in 2011, an 11.7 per cent increase over the previous year, with Dr Cunnane highlighting Shannon Development key role in this upsured. “We are delighted with these preliminary results which clearly reflect the hard work that is being done on the ground and internationally to promote this region as a premier tourist destination,” he told The Clare People .

“While these figures are encouraging, we would acknowledge that not all businesses would have benefited equally. To support tourism businesses in the Shannon region, Shannon Development undertook a series of its own strategic tourism initiatives in 2011,” he said.

“These delivered 155,000 extra visitors, 310,000 bednights and an additional € 30 million in revenue. Over the past four years, tourism initiatives undertaken directly by the company have delivered a direct economic benefit of almost € 160 million for the region’s tourism industry.”

Tourism continues to be one of the key economic drivers in the Shannon region’s economy, employing more than 25,000 people in over 1,000 tourism businesses and attracting over 1.8 million visitors in 2011.

The continued success of Shannon Development subsidiary, Shannon Heritage, in this tourist drive was highlighted in the figures that show it recorded a five per cent growth in 2011 with 436,300 visitors across the board at all its tourist sites.

“The Shannon Heritage operation continues to be an economic driver by contributing an estimated € 15 million in revenue for the local economy,” said Dr Cunnane

“The Shannon region boasts a superb range of tourist attractions and Shannon Development’s Product Development team is constantly working to help the tourism trade devise new visitor attractions to entice the next generation of visitors.

“We want to ensure that this region is a ‘must visit’ destination.

“Our team is currently working on over € 22 million worth of tourism projects. A particular area of concentration for the company in 2011 was the development of sports tourism and conference business in the Shannon region,” added Dr Cunnane.

SHANNON Development incurred losses of over € 10m in 2011, but the chief executive, Dr Vincent Cunnane, has expressed himself to be “quite pleased” with company’s performance amid the challenging times of the current economic climate.

Figures from the annual report that was released last Tuesday show that pre-tax losses at the company narrowed by over 27 per cent during the year, from € 14.5m in 2010 to € 11.9m for the year ending December 2011.

The company’s performance comes against a backdrop of revenues declining by seven per cent from € 32.4m to € 30.2m in the 12 months to the end of December last. Dr Vincent Cunnane said he was “quite pleased” with this performance and pointed out that the biggest contributory factor to the pre-tax loss was a combined non-cash cost of € 10.5m made up of a depreciation charge of € 7m and a € 3.5m write-down in property assets.

“We had a small operating deficit,” said Dr Cunnane. “Over € 10m of it is a paper loss in terms of depreciation and impairment. When you take it all out their was a small operating loss of € 1.5m,” he added.

During 2011 Shannon Development’s rental earnings from its € 100m property portfolio dropped by over € 1m from € 13.3m to € 12.2m, which represented an eight per cent drop.

Meanwhile, as a direct result of the property crash, the company’s income from property sales has collapsed resulting in combined losses of € 45.6m in the past three years, largely made up of impairment charges and depreciation. “A significant improvement in un- derlying economic conditions will be required in order to facilitate the realisation of a number of major property sales and investment projects by the company,” the annual report states. “Accordingly, the company will adjust a number of the strategic plan key performance indicators such as job creation targets, visitor numbers and capital expenditure targets during 2012 and 2013 in order to take account of the prevailing economic climate,” it adds. “I believe that the best way out of a difficulty is to face it head on,” said Dr Cunnane. “In that vein, Shannon Development has managed its resources to respond to the most serious recession in a generation. “Against a difficult economic background, Shannon Development staff are continuing to craft the building blocks to help secure the economic future of our region. For this, I would like to personally commend their continued commitment and dedication. Shannon Development will continue to work to ensure that our region is a world class global location where people want to live, work and spend leisure time. As a regional development agency we are firmly focused on delivering a strong economic future for everyone living in the Shannon region,” he added.

UNEMPLOYMENT in Clare is at a four-month high, but the numbers signing on have dropped compared to this time last year. However, there are now more women on the dole queues than there were this time last year.

As many as 10,437 people were receiving some form of unemployment assistance in the county last month.

This is the lowest number of people seeking unemployment payments during the month of July since the number unemployed rose significantly in 2009.

In July 2008, 6,023 Clare people were unemployed. By July 2009, the number had jumped to 10,497 and increased again to 10,796 this time last year.

There was a slight drop of 271 this July when compared to 12 months ago. However, unemployment in the county had increased by 239 compared to June 2012.

While the overall unemployment number has dropped compared to last year, there was a slight increase in the number of women signing on. However there are still over 2,000 more men than women on Clare’s dole queues even though the number of men seeking job assistance had dropped by 288 on last year.

There are also less people under 25 seeking employment compared to the same time last year. However, the unemployment rate among this age group has increased by 59 to 1,729 compared to June.

The number of people over 25 years of age unemployed has now reached 8,708 an increase of 180 on the previous month but a drop of 85 on last year.

The largest number of Clare people seeking unemployment assistance do so in Ennis, with 5,995 people signing on last month.

This compares favourably to July 2011 when 6,159 people were signing on.

In Ennis, the number of women in receipt of Jobseekers Allowance and unemployment benefit has increased slightly, while the number of men in the same position has decreased.

This is a fact reflected in two of the three social welfare areas, the exception being Tulla where 1, 501 people are currently unemployed.

Here too the number of unemployed decreased slightly compared to 12 months ago. However, there was a drop in unemployment rates among both genders.

In Kilrush, the number unemployed was at 1,449, a drop of just seven compared to last year, while in Ennistymon there was a decrease of 33 to 1,492 people on the unemployment list.

CRIMINALS in Kilrush will quite literally be in the frame for any wrong doings within the next few months, as plans for the town’s first CCTV system is finalised.

The town’s local authority has agreed to relocate funding from its own budget to install the crime de- tecting and deterring cameras in the west Clare town.

Kilrush Town Clerk John Corry said plans for CCTV in Kilrush is at an advanced stage.

He told a meeting of the Kilrush Joint Policing Committee (JPC) that the council has learnt that the project now has to go through the planning process.

This will take at least three months.

“We will go to procurements at the same time, which would have taken two months anyhow,” he explained.

Supt Gerry Wall offered some time and money saving ideas to the council, as he welcomed the initiative.

“People become used to CCTV in an area and move on to somewhere else, so we need flexibility,” he said.

He suggested that the council apply for a number of locations that far exceed the number of cameras during the planning process.

The cameras could then be moved quickly to a new location where it may be needed in the fight against crime.

“A little forecasting now would save money in the future,” he said.

The members of the JPC, made up of the council, gardaí and community representatives, are now encouraging members of the public to come to the next public meeting of the committee, to have their say about policing in the area and raise any concerns they may have.

“If they have interest in the community and have a place they believe me or my colleagues should be, this is the place for it,” he said.

AN € 80 million bounty is being lost to Clare and the mid-west because of the Football Association of Ireland’s refusal to back the ambitious plans of an Ennis-born entrepreneur to bring the cream of European club soccer to the region.

Damien O’Brien, who hails from the Turnpike area of Ennis and is bringing Manchester City to Thomond Park this Sunday to take on Limerick FC, has blasted the FAI’s commitment to soccer outside Dublin over failing to sanction his plans for a multi-million euro soccer extravaganza in the mid-west.

“I was due to do a tournament in Thomond Park this year – the same weekend that Man City are coming, but the FAI refused the rights to bring four teams into Limerick,” revealed Mr O’Brien.

“It’s ridiculous what went on. It was a four-year deal that I was bringing to Limerick and it would be worth € 80 million into the economy, but the FAI in their own ignorance decided to stop it,” he added.

Thirty-eight-year-old O’Brien was the brainchild behind ‘Football’s Next Star’, the Sky TV programme that has been dubbed “football’s X-Factor” and syndicated to 103 countries around the world. He is the managing director of the Iconic sports agency that’s based in Manchester.

Having been thwarted in his bid to host a tournament in Thomond Park this weekend, he helped secure the services of Manchester City who will take on Limerick FC in a friendly game this Sunday evening at 7pm.

“Being refused for the tournament wasn’t going to deter me,” he revealed. “I had the support of Limerick in this and that’s why it’s happening. Limerick had to go to the High Court to get the right to hold this match. It’s shocking.

“It’s a great showcase for the region, the stadium and for the Limerick players. This is putting soccer in the region in the shop window. This match will air live in over 100 countries, so it’s fantastic for Limerick.

“Manchester City are bringing their full squad – it will be their full line-up and it’s their last pre-season friendly before the Community Shield and Premier League starts,” he added

THE Chairman of the Clare Branch of the Irish College of General Practitioners has acknowledged that changes are required to the issuing of sick certificates.

Dr Fergus Glynn was speaking following comments made by Judge Patrick Durcan at Ennis District Court on Wednesday.

Judge Durcan has commented in recent weeks about the number of people in Clare who fail to show up for scheduled court appearances.

He has also remarked on the types of letters written by doctors in support of the medical reasons offered by people in explanation for their non-attendance.

On Wednesday, Judge Durcan read out the contents of a letter written by a doctor explaining why his patient could not attend court. Judge Durcan also named the doctor and the address of his practice.

Judge Durcan told the court that the letter stated, “This man has attended my surgery. He has problems with alcohol. He has been vomiting. He tells me he is not feeling well.”

Judge Durcan said, “I don’t want letters from doctors telling me what their patients think. I want letters with their (the doctor’s) opinions.”

Judge Durcan requested a copy of the letter, humorously remarking that he is collecting all doctors’ letters handed to him for inclusion in a book about the subject.

Speaking yesterday, Dr Glynn said, “The current system of sick certs is in need of an overhaul. We recognise that it is imperfect and it is open to abuse by patients.”

However, the Corofin-based doctor said GPs are often placed in “impossible positions” by patients seeking sick certificates.

He said there had been a lot of discussion recently around the issue of sick certificates.

Dr Glynn continued, “We are only acting in good faith on what the patient and client has told us. Very often, doctors are put in difficult if not impossible positions. It is an imperfect system, one that unscrupulous people will try to abuse.”