A little of the gloom surrounding the economy lifted yesterday as one of the world's most high-profile dotcom companies confirmed it is to create 800 jobs in the Republic, writes Edward Power.
Coming a week after nearly 1,000 redundancies were announced in Dublin and Kildare, the decision by the online auction site eBay to locate the European headquarters of its PayPal payment-processing subsidiary in Blanchardstown, west Dublin, was seized on by the Government as a vindication of its industrial policies.
The announcement follows weeks of speculation that eBay was poised to choose the Republic, but had delayed finalising the move after IDA Ireland attempted unsuccessfully to persuade it to situate some operations outside Dublin.
The news will be doubly welcome in Blanchardstown, where the IT manufacturer 3Com last week unveiled closure plans which will see 640 jobs go.
The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, said eBay's decision to opt for Dublin, which follows the arrival of dotcom giants Google and Overture earlier this year, underlined the State's status as a first-rank location for companies at the cutting edge of Internet services.
"[This] investment confirms that Ireland is succeeding in implementing the stated IDA strategy of making the country a leading location for the digital media industry."
Ms Harney confirmed eBay had been offered a better grants package to set up in a location outside Dublin, believed to be Athlone, but that it had been adamant only the capital was suitable.
Opposition politicians welcomed eBay's decision, but warned against complacency. Labour's finance spokeswoman, Ms Joan Burton, accused the Government of "slashing" resources for IT research and development at third level.
Recruitment is already under way for PayPal's European customer services and financial services centre, which will employ 400 in west Dublin. A further 400 will work at eBay's second customer support centre for Europe, expected to be operating by next year.