Blow to John Paul

PROFITS before tax at John Paul Construction, one of the country’s largest building firms, plunged from €3.1 million in 2008 to €18,000 last year.

2009 was a challenging one for the company, according to accounts for the year to December 31, 2009. The directors said this was due to a difficult economic climate and a shrinking market.

They said despite this the group’s performance was satisfactory, with turnover of €132m compared with €135m in 2008, according to accounts just filed for John Paul Holdings Limited.