Marie Sherlock (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Graham and Mr. Rogers from Retail Excellence for attending today. I thank also Mr. Doyle, Mr. Light and Ms Quinn. It is great to see them as worked alongside them for many years.

There is very much a common agenda here in that we need to ensure the survival of the retail sector. It is the largest employer in the country, and one which is in every town, village, city and community. It is vital that every effort is made, and I share Deputy Bruton's view on the need for a retail strategy. It goes beyond the issues of rent and pay to the issues of sustainability, transport, access and all those other things. To pick up on what Mr. Rogers talked about, issues of planning and local authorities all need to be included. The congress proposal of a retail stakeholder group is very important and one that I will be supporting and pushing the Government to bring about.

I want to ask Retail Excellence about the very serious issue it raised regarding the rent. I want to get a better handle on what is happening with the rent review that is taking place. What share of those who have engaged in a rent review have been institutional investors or have been individual landlords, because understanding who is engaging and who is failing to engage should determine the Government response? On that vein, who is the worst affected? Are we talking about individual shops? Is it more a town or a city issue? What type of retail is affected? Perhaps Mr. Graham could shed some light on who precisely is affected, who precisely are the landlords - I am not asking for names now but the types of landlords - and where those shops are located.