Mr. David Joyce:

We outlined in our opening statement that we think that if structures such as those envisaged in the Bill were in place, perhaps we would not be in the mess that we are facing in Bord na Móna in the midlands. Generally speaking, we are talking here about an architecture for delivering a just transition which we all agree is something we want to achieve. There is frustration on our side that, while the words "just transition" are bandied around quite a lot, nobody in government has come to ICTU, where the concept originated, and asked how we think it should be delivered. The Government should not only be talking to us, it should equally be talking to employers and communities but we are lacking a national dialogue as to how this is delivered.

In the absence of that, the Bill is an impetus to that discussion and that is why we welcome it very much. It has the potential to address many of the issues that we have been discussing today and discussed last week. One of the key elements of a just transition is social dialogue and we, as representatives of hundreds of thousands of workers on the island, should be part of the dialogue in coming up with how we do just transition. We should not be just recipients of it but active participants in designing it and ensuring that it is delivered.