IFI ‘could have been saved’

THE Government’s decision to close Irish Fertiliser Industries with the loss of 620 jobs last night sparked a furious row over whether the firm could have been saved.

Union leaders and politicians accused Tánaiste Mary Harney of ignoring a rescue package under which workers agreed to major pay cuts.

But Ms Harney insisted that the loss-making firm could not be propped up by taxpayers’ money any more, resulting in the closure of the 40-year-old company which has plants in Cork, Arklow and Belfast.