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 Current Unemployment in Tipperary
The number of people unemployed in Ireland is to fall below one in ten for the first time in years, or so Government funded clairvoyants have recently predicted. Here in Tipperary we usually consider our futures based on the prevailing “Five Senses of Perception,” at any given time, namely; Sight, Hearing, Taste, Smell and Touch.
The latest Tipperary Live Register figures, which show a rise in unemployment for the 3rd consecutive month in a row, must therefore be viewed with enormous apprehension.
Some 300 persons joined our lengthening dole queues in all areas of the county, except Cashel (Latter’s register reduced by just one solitary soul) during July, according to the regional figures released by the Central Statistics Office.
Thurles had the biggest increase in persons seeking unemployment benefit, with 109 extra people recorded on the live register; Clonmel had an additional 55; Roscrea had 6; Tipperary Town had 42: Nenagh had 29; Cahir had 47 and Carrick-on-Suir had an additional 23 persons.
Nationally the latest figures show some 11.5% of the workforce are jobless, with slightly over 400,000 people signing on the dole.
Current Commercial Buildings Vacant in Tipperary
Meanwhile, with our Tipperary elected politicians currently on holidays until 2.30 p.m. on Wednesday, 17th September 2014, we find over a tenth of commercial premises in Tipperary continue to remain vacant. The national vacancy rate increased by 0.7 % from 11.9% to 12.6% between 2013 and 2014.
The latest figures from GeoDirectory shows that of the nine thousand estimated registered business outlets here in Tipperary; over a thousand of them are barren, void and unoccupied, with the vacancy rate continuing to rise during the second three months of the year.
It would appear that our Government’s funded intuitive clairvoyants are having some difficulty when it comes to foreseeing future trends and non-political action beyond the range of natural vision, here in our Premier County of Tipperary.
  
 A male foreign national has been jailed for four years, with the final three years suspended, after he falsely obtained €17,926 in Social Welfare Benefits under a deceased man’s name. Ukrainian national Mr Oleh Toropov, who held an address at Ormond Street, Nenagh, Co Tipperary, entered Ireland originally under the name of a deceased Latvian man and proceeded to obtain work during a four years period, while paying tax under the same assumed name.
Having lost employment at a meat-processing firm and at a construction firm in 2012, Mr Toropov continued to use the dead man’s name to obtain social welfare payments including rent allowance.
Nenagh Circuit Court heard that Mr Toropov obtained a PPS number, which allowed him to fraudulently claim the payments, before being found out by a Special Investigations Unit attached to the Department of Social Protection here in Thurles, latter who, satisfied that a fraud had been committed, had notified Gardaí.
According to Garda evidence Nenagh Circuit Court heard that the Ukrainian had falsely claimed €7,344.50 in Jobseeker’s Benefit, €10,070 in Jobseeker’s Allowance, together with €512 in Rent Allowance. Polish, Russian, Romanian and Ukrainian passports were also found while searching his address, prior to his arrest.
Detective Garda Declan O’Carroll accepted in court that Mr Toropov had worked and paid all due taxes for the four previous years in question and also accepted he was sending money home to support family members.
 Tipperary’s Local Enterprise Office (LEO) has finally commenced a review of all industrial workspaces available across the County. This review occurs following the recent merger of North and South Tipperary and will focus on the need to create badly needed job opportunities here in the county presently.
This review will now determine in full all workspaces available and will culminate in the provision of a register of identified vacant industrial and other properties; thus giving future vision to a valuable marketing resource for all upcoming or already existing entrepreneurs both within the County and further afield.
This workspace availability study will focus on identifying all types of workspaces; ranging from light industrial units, advance factories, ‘Hot Desk’ space, food grade workspace whether to be found in public or private ownership. Same will involve contacting Chambers of Commerce, local Auctioneers, IDA, the Local Authority, Institutes of Technology and community owned enterprise centres etc. to fully establish what spaces are currently vacant, together with full details as to the length and term of any possible tenancy available, the cost per sq. metre, etc.
Property owners wishing to be added to this ‘Workspace Data Bank’ are asked to contact the Local Enterprise Office to confirm that they have space now available or even presently under construction, either for sale or lease. The obvious benefits of this study is that it will highlight discrepancy pockets within Tipperary which in turn could support a future business case for seeking investment in workspace in the County and where demand for such space has been already established.
These newly identified property listings will continue to be maintained and will be made available to all future entrepreneurs, through the Local Tipperary Enterprise Office.
If anyone is interested in being included in this data listing and in having your particular enterprise space promoted, please contact Anthony Fitzgerald, Business Support Unit, Tipperary County Council, Ballingarrane House, Clonmel, Telephone 052-6187074 or Email: leo@tipperarycoco.ie or talk to any of the LEO staff accessible though your new Co. Tipperary Local Authority.
In an email this afternoon to Thurles Information from Tipperary TD Noel Coonan, the elected representative has confirmed that he has been in contact with M/s Josephine Feehily, Chairperson of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners and she in turn has confirmed that there are no plans in the offing to relocate staff from Thurles’s Revenue Office to Cashel.
 Deputy Coonan states in his communication that, quote “I hope this helps allay concerns for the staff and families concerned.”
The email received includes a forwarded copy of a further short email sent and signed by M/s Karen Martin, (Private Secretary, Revenue Commissioners, Chairman’s Office, Blocks 8 – 10, Dublin Castle, Dublin 2, Ireland) which reads;
“Deputy Coonan,
As discussed, Revenue have no plans to relocate staff working in Thurles Revenue office to Cashel.”
However Thurles Information is already aware that no such approach had ever been formally made by the Revenue Commissioners to relocate their staff working in the Thurles Revenue office. The approach instead was made, as we stated, by the Office of Public Works (OPW) in response to instructions that the latter had received from government in an effort to facilitate the centralisation and expansion of social welfare services from this same offices in Stradavoher, Thurles, and the offer by the OPW of alternative accommodation for Revenue to be located in Cashel.
We now invite Deputy Coonan to flatly deny that any such approach was ever made by the Office of Public Works regarding such future relocation planned to be imposed on Thurles Revenue staff. We also invite the Deputy to confirm publicly that no such relocation of Thurles Revenue personnel will now take place.
Such a statement from Deputy Coonan and his current government would further “help allay concerns for the staff and families concerned.”
Thurles Information has now emailed Deputy Coonan to this effect and await his reply.
Revenue Commissioners The Civil Public and Services Union (CPSU) representing employees at the Revenue Commissioners office in Thurles say that no decision has been made, as yet, to move 80 plus workers out of Thurles to Cashel.
Grave concerns have been expressed in recent days over the suggestion that the Office of Public Works (OPW) now intend to move existing staff working in the Revenue Service and relocate same to new premises identified in Cashel some 16 miles from Thurles.
The Office of Public Works have suggested that the move is now necessary to facilitate a more centralised growth to present social welfare services operating out of the present Revenue offices situated at Stradavoher here in Thurles.
The CPSU state that they are aware of approaches already made by the OPW and have made contact with the Revenue Commissioners seeking further clarification regarding this OPW proposed decision.
Thurles Chamber President Mr John O’Shaughnessy stated this morning that any such effort to move Revenue personnel from Thurles would spell a further economic downturn for a town already dwelling under a severe economic black cloud, and would further increase unemployment in the area. Mr O’Shaughnessy stated that he fully accepted the putting in place of a more consolidated social welfare unit in Thurles, thus contributing to overall improved services, but said that the solution was to be found in the provision or expansion of badly needed permanent government office space within Thurles and not the dismantling and removing of established jobs, to the detriment of local business, as apparently currently being proposed by the OPW.
Around Thurles this morning abide whispered accusations that this proposed move is being prompted more by unwanted southern Tipperary political interference, rather than by any need to centralise social welfare services. Many are now calling for their elected political representatives to further clarify the government’s position regarding this matter.
Thurles ‘Unemployment Figures’ for May of this year show an increase of some 27 people being added to the live register, with some 1,037 commercial premises now lying unused in Co Tipperary according to GeoDirectory figures supplied for the first quarter of 2014.
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