Kingdom bosses urge action to prevent bleak future

BUSINESS leaders in Kerry yesterday issued a strong wake-up call to address a crisis situation, following the loss of more than 2,000 manufacturing jobs in the county in the last five years.

These jobs have not been replaced and Kerry could become even more reliant on tourism for employment, warned IBEC regional director Adrian Beatty at the launch of a major business report by the confederation, titled Securing Kerry’s Future, in Killarney.

“We just cannot sit back and allow jobs to disappear, but our members don’t see evidence of action on the ground by the Government, State agencies, Oireachtas representatives and Kerry County Council. Someone has to take a leadership role and the business community is doing that now,” he told the Kerry IBEC annual general meeting.