Around 75 new jobs are to be created with the opening of celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's first restaurant in Ireland, it has been announced.

Jamie's Italian is set to begin serving at Dundrum Town Centre, Dublin this autumn.

Senior chefs and managers are now being recruited and work will start shortly on a 4,500 sq ft unit in the Pembroke area of Dundrum.

The chef has pledged to work with independent Irish food producers and work to identify suppliers has already begun, with Jamie's Italian International Operations Chef Marcos Georgiou visiting potential farms and factories around the country, along with Irish restaurateur Gerry Fitzpatrick, with whom Jamie has chosen to work for Jamie's Italian in Ireland.

The popular TV chef and author said opening a restaurant in the capital was a "dream come true".

"Anyone who has been to a Jamie’s Italian in the UK knows that we’re all about delicious, affordable food and great staff, so we’re currently on the hunt for around 75 fantastic local people to join our team as chefs and front of house staff. 

"We'll be sourcing loads of wonderful local produce to give the place a really special feel," he added.

"I can’t wait for us to be open”.

Senior chefs and managers that want to apply for positions should contact Jamie's Italian via email at recruitment@jamiesitalian.ie.

The US multinational, Merit Medical, is to expand its operations in Galway with the creation of over 150 new jobs.

IDA has supported the expansion at Merit Medical in Galway.

A €20m facility will be officially opened by the Taoiseach in Parkmore as part of the IDA supported investment.
The medical devices company, Merit, is in Galway since 1996 and currently employs 379 people.

Copperfasten, an Irish software company that produces internet security solutions, today announced that it will create 37 new jobs supported by Enterprise Ireland in Galway.

The expansion is based on new investment of E500k by Oyster Technology Investments Ltd and Enterprise Ireland.

The investment will help fund a significant export-led growth plan that is forecast to more than treble sales over the next 3 years. It builds on previous significant investment in R and D by the firm, part-funded by Enterprise Ireland, to develop WebTitan, the company's web security gateway appliance.

Copperfasten Technologies, which currently employs 15 people in Salthill, Galway was established in 2000 by former staff of DEC Galway. The company produces two internet security solutions for the B2B market - SpamTitan and WebTitan.

Congratulating the company in Galway today, An Taoiseach Enda Kenny said: "This announcement by Copperfasten is great news for Galway, for the Western region and for the Irish software industry. This is a prime example of an Irish firm, investing in R and D to develop world-class products for export and growth at home and abroad."

Ronan Kavanagh, CEO of Copperfasten Technologies said: "We are delighted to make this announcement today which will allow us to continue to build on our success to date and increase the foot print of our products internationally. We have seen fantastic adoption of our products and it is great to now be in a position to build on this. This investment and the new positions will allow us to drive sales and scale the company in the forthcoming years."

The Rehab Group announced today that it plans to recruit 750 staff in its operations over the next three years, with over 400 of those to be based in Ireland.

It currently employs over 3,500 people, with 2,500 staff based in Ireland and another 1,000 in the UK, Poland and the Netherlands.

The new posts arise in the areas of training, education, health and social care, IT, sales and marketing, management and administration, it said.

Commenting on the announcement Angela Kerins, Chief Executive, said that Rehab has a significant growth strategy for 2012 to 2015 in all of its areas of activity. “We are currently looking further afield at new opportunities and hope to have some important new developments to announce later this year.”

“Rehab Group provides health, social care, education and training services to 56,000 people in four EU member states and we aim to grow this to supporting 75,000 people by 2015. Our services are recognised internationally, and have proven results. For example, 90pc of people who complete our training courses here in Ireland go on to further education, training or employment. Our overriding objective is to improve the lives of the people we support and to provide sustainable employment for our staff, both with and without disabilities,” he said.

“Most people are familiar with Rehab Group as a provider of services to people with disabilities and others who are marginalised in their communities, but may not be aware that in addition to our health and education services in Ireland and the UK, we run a number of businesses in each of the four countries in which we work. For example, Rehab is Ireland’s largest processor of glass for recycling, exporting nearly 100,000 tonnes of glass per year. We also operate a resource recovery business in Ireland, the UK and the Netherlands and an international logistics business in Poland and the Netherlands, as well as a retail business and significant gaming and lottery interests. While like everyone else we experience difficulties in some markets, overall we have a positive view of our future development and believe that this can be achieved with hard work, a ‘can-do’ attitude and a little adventure into new areas.”

Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton said: “A central part of our plan for jobs and growth is creating a powerful engine of indigenous enterprise. Yes we must continue to attract world-class multinational companies, but we must also ensure that we have more Irish companies growing to scale, competing and succeeding in world markets, and creating more jobs.”

“Rehab is an Irish organisation which had success in its original field, branched out into new sectors, competed and succeeded in export markets and created large-scale employment. Today’s announcement that it is to create 750 new jobs over the next three years is very welcome. I am determined that, through continued implementation of the Action Plan for Jobs, we can see more Irish companies replicate this success and drive the sustainable jobs recovery that we need.”

Laya Healthcare, the Irish private health insurer that took over from Quinn Health, launched today with the announcement of the creation of 100 new jobs.

The company currently employs 343 people at its headquarters in Cork.

Donal Clancy, Managing Director said that this is a hugely exciting day for the private health insurance market and for all the team at Laya healthcare.

"From today, laya healthcare will position itself as the key consumer champion in the private health insurance market. All of us involved in the sector recognise that there are significant issues and problems which need to be resolved. For our part we, at laya healthcare, will do everything possible to ensure that our members have a strong voice from within the industry to champion their cause and to add positively to the national healthcare debate. Our new company philosophy is totally focused on securing the best possible outcome for our members".

Laya healthcare's new HeartBeat initiative, which will be delivered in conjunction with provider HeartAid, is the company's free cardiac screening for members and was developed specifically to help combat the incidence of Sudden Adult Death Syndrome, heart attacks and other cardiac related conditions. Heart conditions including sudden adult death syndrome are a major cause of deaths in Ireland each year. Up to 2 young people die each week in Ireland from Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS). The European Society of Cardiology & International Olympic Committee recommend cardiac screening, as does the GAA's Medical Scientific & Advisory committee. HeartBeat will allow new and existing laya healthcare members to avail of this excellent benefit to help early detection and prevention of conditions that may cause Sudden Adult Death Syndrome (SADS).

Laya healthcare's policies are underwritten by Elips Insurance Ltd. (trading as laya healthcare), a wholly owned subsidiary of Swiss Re. The Swiss Re Group is a leading wholesale provider of reinsurance, insurance and other insurance-based forms of risk transfer.

BT today announced the results for its all-Ireland operation for the full year to the end of March last showing flat revenues but profits that hit a new record with a 9pc rise on the previous year.

It reported revenue of £757m, which was up 1pc year on year (broadly flat in the year excluding the impact of foreign exchange.

It did not break down its Irish profits figure but said that EBITDA or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased by 9pc year on year.

BT said this was as a result of continued transformation, including improved supplier management and efficiency programmes, and the successful delivery of several large retail and wholesale contracts. Free Cash Flow (FCF) also grew; up 13pc year on year.

"We have delivered increased revenues, profits and free cash flow, despite the economic headwinds, which demonstrates the stability and strength of our business. By continuing to transform our cost base and re-invest for growth our products and solutions portfolio has never been stronger. Continued investment in building advanced communications networks across the island, coupled with excellent IT services capabilities, is proving to be BT's compelling differentiator in this market," said Colm O'Neill, Chief Executive, BT Ireland. BT Ireland's Consumer division, which operates in Northern Ireland, recorded strong demand for BT Infinity fibre broadband service. Take up increased by more than four-fold year on year. There has been rapid growth in Wi-Fi (wireless broadband) and BT's network of Wi-Fi hotspots in Northern Ireland has grown to over 168,000.

Demand for BT Vision, the company's TV service, gathered momentum in the year, and is expected to be boosted by Northern Ireland's Digital TV Switchover in October 2012.

A strong portfolio of network and IT services helped BT Business increase revenues year on year, and secure a wide variety of contracts with business and government organisations including: Allianz Group, Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, Belfast Metropolitan College, Elavon Financial Services, FBD Insurance, Randox Laboratories, ROI Department of Social Protection, NI Department of Finance & Personnel, the Police Service of Northern Ireland and Tourism Ireland. BT Business recorded double-digit percentage revenue growth in IT services/hardware for the third year running, cementing BT Ireland's position as a leading partner of Avaya, Cisco, EMC and HP. In Northern Ireland, BT Business sales of fibre broadband, BT Infinity, more than trebled year on year as businesses adopt superfast broadband to underpin their growth.

Banks are quietly readying themselves to start trading a new Greek currency. Some banks never erased the drachma from their systems after Grece adopted the euro more than a decade ago and would be ready at the flick of a switch if its debt problems forced it to bring back national banknotes and coins. From the end of the Soviet Union - which spawned currencies such as the Estonian Kroon and the Kazakh Tenge - to the introduction of the euro, they have had plenty of practice in preparing their systems to cope with change.

Planning behind the scenes has been underway since Europe's debt crisis erupted in Greece in 2009, said U.S.-based Hartmut Grossman of ICS Risk Advisors who works with Wall Street banks. "A lot of the firms, particularly in Europe and also here, have been looking at that for a long time," said Grossman, who added that the latest Greek political crisis had brought matters "to a little bit of a head". "But there really has been contingency planning at all of the financial institutions for that to happen ... Greece leaving the euro zone is not a new idea," he said. The EU says it wants Greece to stay in the common currency, and opinion polls show Greeks want to keep it. But they also voted last Sunday for parties opposed to a bailout with the EU and IMF, throwing Greece's future in the bloc back into doubt.

The elections threw into doubt the EU/IMF aid package that came at the price of harsh austerity measures, and was reached only after much haggling between banks and politicians over a 100 billion euro debt reduction. While the deal averted financial market catastrophe by allowing Greece to continue repaying its reduced debts, any future problems could be yet more troublesome, even if Athens managed the process in a more or less orderly fashion.

A Greek departure from the euro would create legal and practical problems for the banks which would dwarf the relatively straightforward technical job of dealing in a new currency. Greece would almost certainly impose foreign exchange controls if it were to drop out of the euro, bankers said, but dealing in any new currency would still be possible. "Forex desks can get ready relatively quickly. It depends on exactly how the exit from the euro happens," said Lewis O'Donald, the London-based Chief Risk Officer at Japanese investment bank Nomura. Currencies that are not freely tradable, such as the Chinese yuan, are widely mirrored in off-shore foreign exchange markets through the use of derivative instruments, such as non-deliverable forwards, or NDFs.

The problem may be bigger for euro zone banks which need cash for individuals or companies doing business in Greece. They face the problem of what exchange rate to use, depending on the laws Athens might draw up for trade it its currency. If Greece forced an exchange rate of, say, one euro to one new drachma, this could impose huge losses on foreign banks because such a rate would not hold on the markets. Controls on the movement of capital could be a nightmare for banks with loans in Greece, potentially making it illegal for companies to repay debt in euros. Even if it were not illegal, companies might no longer be able to repay foreign creditors because their cash had been converted overnight into drachmas - a currency that would rapidly lose its value due to the dire state of the Greek economy. That would, in turn, make it tough for any lender to get its money back, whatever contract it might have. ( C) Reuters

Aviva today said that it has reduced the number of redundancies it will seek from its Irish workforce to 540 compared to the 770 it announced back in October of last year.

Separately, it is also planning to create 220 new posts in Galway in claims insurance and direct sales.

It said that it has also enhanced the redundancy terms on offer to six weeks per year of service and that each staff member affected will receive a personal retraining allowance valued at E8,000.

"We remain disappointed at the loss of jobs" said Unite Regional Officer Brian Gallagher, "but there has been a reduction in the number of positions being made redundant from an original 770 to a figure now of 540."

"In addition we are pleased to have secured an initial 220 new positions in Galway as well as maintaining strong existing bases in Dublin and Cork." This reduces the net loss of jobs in Ireland by 450 from what was previously announced."

Article 1 states that the Treaty aims to strengthen economic and monetary union by adopting rules to improve budgetary discipline and to strengthen coordination of economic policies.

Article 2 makes it clear that the Treaty must comply with EU Treaties.

Article 3 requires a Government to run a balanced budget or one that creates a surplus (ie, it generally cannot spend more than it raises in taxes). It sets out in technical terms how the rule is to be applied, and requires that it be included by each country in its national law.

Article 4 states that a country must not have a debt bigger than 60% of what it produces in a year (its GDP). If it does, it must reduce its debt by one-twentieth of the excess each year. This is an existing EU rule.

Article 5 states that a country with an excessive deficit (too large a gap between its income and spending) will have to put in place a programme of economic reform.

Article 6 states that countries will share information on when they plan to issue debt (to sell bonds to raise money).

Article 7 makes it easier to hold countries that break EU economic rules to account, as those bound by the Treaty agree to act together to support the EU Commission in this.

Article 8 says that it will be possible for a country to be taken to the European Court of Justice if it doesn’t apply the rule of Article 3 in its national laws properly. If the Court finds against it, and it does not comply, the country might be fined.

Article 9 contains an agreement to work together to ensure the proper functioning of the euro so as to promote employment and economic stability.

Article 10 states that the countries participating are ready to work together in groups on particular issues where not everyone in the EU wants to move forward together (enhanced cooperation). This would be done case-by-case and within existing EU rules.

Article 11 contains an agreement to share plans for major economic policy reforms with each other.

Articles 12 and 13 contain arrangements to improve the working of the euro area, including an agreement for Prime Ministers to meet at least twice a year.

Article 14 says that each country will ratify the Treaty according to its own requirements – in Ireland’s case a referendum. It will come into force once 12 euro area countries have ratified it. The target date for ratification is 1 January 2013. 

Article 15 provides that other EU countries can join in the future.

Article 16 provides that steps will be taken to include this new Treaty in the EU Treaties no more than 5 years from when it comes into force.

Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Leo Varadkar has told the Dail today that the temporary 9pc VAT rate for tourism services such as restaurant meals and hotel accommodation will now apply to the end of 2013.