Sinn Féin Councillor Seán Crowe has expressed shock and concern at the prospect of up to 200 job losses at UTC Fire and Security in Tallaght.

Councillor Crowe said the job losses ‘would be a devastating blow to the community and the local economy that already has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.’

He said: “It is imperative that the company engages in dialogue with the workers’ representatives with a view to saving as many jobs as possible.

“These job losses would be a devastating blow to the community and the local economy that already has one of the highest unemployment rates in the state.

“As I have said before, the Government must bring forward as a matter of urgency, a strategy for dealing with unemployment black spots such as Tallaght.

“While Brian Cowen today announced his job creation plan the reality is that people are continuing to lose their jobs as a result of his Government’s inaction up to now and there is no confidence in the community here that his strategy is anything more than yet another PR  exercise that will once again amount to nothing.

“It is time for this Government to go.”