20,000 sign petition for pharma plan funding

ALMOST 20,000 Kerry people have signed a petition calling on Taoiseach Brian Cowen to ensure €51 million in state funding for a major pharmaceutical project in Tralee.

The €4.7 billion Global Pharmaceutical Centre of Excellence (GPCE) is dependant on government financial backing if it is to go ahead.

The signatures were collected in Tralee at the weekend in a unified approach from the business, sporting, social and tourism communities in Kerry to encourage the Government to give the project the green light.