Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank both speakers for coming in today. It is a very valuable report as there is a lot of very good content in there. It is welcome to have this debate. I was struck by one of the comments made by Mr. Gilvarry in response to Deputy O'Reilly on the importance of making this country a good place to live, which I think comes through in the report. We have one of the highest proportions of low-wage workers in any economy in Europe. Does Mr. Gilvarry think it is a good country to live in for those workers at the moment? People are taking home €380 a week despite the challenge of the costs they have to face in terms of rent, ever-spiralling bills and the cost of living. What steps does Mr. Gilvarry think we need to take in regard to those workers to make the country a good place to live? Does he have a view on the EU minimum wage directive, for example, which is an issue that has come up with the Government? Unfortunately, it looks to date as if the Government certainly wants to water down that directive and it does not want to make it binding, yet that is the type of directive that could actually influence increasing collective bargaining in this State and giving workers a decent and better pay packet. I will start by asking Mr. Gilvarry for his views on that issue.