Tony McCormack (Offaly, Fianna Fail)

First, I thank the witnesses for being forthright and honest with their feedback to us. I thank them for telling us the current situation.

Ms McCabe and Mr. Jennings have put the whole wage argument into a different perspective because I never really thought about the whole Dublin, Cork and rest-of-the-country scenario. It certainly puts a different complexion on this that we have to be cognisant of.

I completely agree with Mr. Jennings when he says it is greed in regard to the insurance costs. The other elephant in the room we have to look at or start to talk about is legal costs. They are hugely represented in here. The conversations do not normally go that well but we need to do it. We have to grab the bull by the horns and start to move on that.

In regard to the retail end of it, I was brought up living over a shop. I was behind the counter since I was eight years of age. I know the value of a yard of counter. As my granny used to say, all you need in life to sell is a yard of counter. That has actually got smaller now that we can sell on our mobile phones but the principle is still the same. It is tough out there. It is tough for all of those retail businesses that are trying to survive on the high street with all of the costs such as rent, rates, wage costs as well as all of the other costs that do not need to be there.

I wish all of the witnesses well because I know they have taken time out of their businesses to be with us. I hope in the future that we as a Government will listen to what they have said and make those changes that will make a real difference.