Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

The Minister said in his opening statement that some Deputies seek to blame Bus Éireann's current problems on the reforming Public Transport Regulation Act 2009 which was brought forward by the former Minister and Deputy, Noel Dempsey. That shows a lack of understanding about what the Act seeks to do, which is to promote public transport and put passengers at its heart. The Minister asks us to take in good faith what he is saying in the statement. He seems to have changed his opinion on the NTA. He has left a trail behind him, showing his attitude to CIE and public transport. He said in 2013 that:

The National Transport Authority is a captive, a quick learner of the quango culture. It was set up in 2009 to supervise Ireland’s public transport shambles. It went native immediately. It has been highly politicised from Day One. Its board is picked by the Minister.

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It serves a real purpose. It shields the Government from the political charge that it was the villain that put up public transport fares.

The fares went up because the subvention was cut, which is something the Minister lauded at the time. He was supportive of the cuts because he thought it would force a change in the governance of CIE and would bring savings. Those savings have not materialised. Does he believe there are savings that can materialise to avert this strike? If not, the only thing being negotiated is cuts in incomes.