Michael Mullins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I have a question. We all accept that the recovery is very unbalanced throughout the country. Some parts of the country, such as the city of Dublin, are doing particularly well. The western region and other parts of the country are experiencing significant difficulties. It is very difficult to argue against an increase for employees who are working in sectors that are doing particularly well. Hotels and restaurants in Dublin and perhaps in other parts of the country are significantly increasing their prices. I am aware that some hotels have increased the cost of accommodation by up to 15% in recent times. The increase may be somewhat more in some cases. The same thing applies to restaurants. How can the witnesses argue that the employees working in those establishments should not see an increase in their wages as a result of the improvement in business that those establishments are seeing?