Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Brian Cowen has been urged by worried politicians in the mid-west to intervene personally in a bid to avert unimagined economic crisis in the region should Dell close its computer manufacturing operation in Limerick.

Local Fine Gael TD (member of Parliament) Kieran O'Donnell said that Cowen has "shown a complete lack of understanding of the magnitude of the situation" at the plant where there are fears for 2,000 jobs in the 3,000 workforce.

The jobs are expected to go in the New Year as part of Dell's rationalization of its operations worldwide.

Tanaiste (Deputy Prime Minister) Mary Coughlan, who is also Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, flew recently with Justice Minister Willie O'Dea, a Limerick native, to Dell's Austin, Texas, headquarters in a bid to secure the jobs at the Irish plant.

The high-powered Irish delegation, which also included the chief executive of the Irish industrial development authority, IDA Ireland, Barry O'Leary, met Bell CEO Michael Bell and senior managers.

The delegation was told that Dell was pushing ahead with its cost saving plan and was continuing its internal consideration of exactly what its new strategy means for its operations in Limerick.

Coughlan and O'Dea received assurances that Dell wished to continue its association with the IDA and the Irish government, but there were no specific guarantees about the jobs in Limerick. O'Dea was left with the impression that the Limerick jobs are to be switched to Eastern Europe and Asia.

O'Donnell said the trip to Austin by the ministers was nothing more than "pure window-dressing."

"That Brian Cowen did not take any personal direct action shows both incompetence and a complete lack of understanding of the magnitude of the situation," he added.

Labor TD Jan O'Sullivan, who also represents the constituency, said the reported level of job losses would have a "devastating effect on the entire economy of the mid-west region."

She called on the government to make an immediate submission to the EU Commission which is investigating whether the Polish government's €52.7 million aid to Dell Products Poland is in breach of EU competition rules.

O'Sullivan added, "Until an official statement is issued by Dell Inc the government must commit and explore every possible option in order to retain all existing jobs in Dell."