Aviva 'absolutely committed to Ireland'

Insurer Aviva has said it hopes today's news about a reduction in the number of planned job losses ends speculation about its commitment to Ireland.

In a statement this morning, the company said it had reduced the number of planned job losses from 950 to 540, and that it would create 220 jobs in Galway later this year.

All of the redundancies will be voluntary, with terms set at six weeks per year of service, capped at two and a half years' pay.

Chief executive of Aviva Ireland Sean Egan said: "We're absolutely committed to Ireland (with) 1.2 million customers. We'll still have over 1,000 insurance staff (after the redundancies) in Ireland."