Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

He would be too modest to say so, but our colleague, Senator Barrett, was our lecturer in TCD, I understand. There is a common interest there.

I wish Mr. Courtney well. If anybody was to headhunt a chairman of Dublin Bus he would be at the top of the list in terms of his CV. It covers all the bases. Given the fact he has worked his way up through the organisation I do not think anybody other than somebody like him would have a proper understanding of how the culture of Dublin Bus works. Deputy Harrington referred to industrial relations. I know from my time in London that transport workers tend to get a bad name and seem to always give the impression that they are going on strike. Maybe it is because the public impact of what they do is much greater than in other areas of service.

I was curious to explore with Mr. Courtney his views on industrial relations in Bus Éireann between the workforce and management. I want to add a caveat. I am fully aware that a lot of sacrifices have been made by the workforce since 2009. There have been severe cuts and that may have been the catalyst for the more recent industrial relations breakdown.