Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On the urban mobility question, I was not there for the debate so I do not know the real details of it. The Deputy makes a very good point on technology. It is absolutely the case that technology is ahead of legislation, but it is very hard to write legislation in anticipation of technologies that might or might not develop. I do not know much about the new driverless car, so I might take the Deputy's advice and contact Google as to whether I can take a look at it. As I said, we would have to provide for it in legislation, but as I have not seen it, I am not sure how. It would definitely be a challenge.

On Aer Lingus, we have had three strike threats in the past six months alone.

Even though the strikes may not happen, the inconvenience for passengers and potential travellers damages the company's reputation. Anything that damages the reputation of the company means that fewer people will book with Aer Lingus which means that it will make less in profit which means that there will be less money for staff. It seems to be a self-defeating strategy. It is hard for me to comment on whether there should be a new mechanism for solving disputes. From the point of view of the Government, the Labour Relations Commission is available to be used any time people wish, but they must want to do it. It is welcome that the company has invited the union to talks and that it has accepted the invitation. I hope they will be able to resolve the matter. In my contacts with both sides they accept that they need a better way to solve their problems, but they have not yet agreed what that better way is.