Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)

Apologies for being late.

The reason is that I was meeting with the Fastway workers. Maybe it is timely that the witnesses are here because I want to put a broader question to them about the company they worked for. What can the commission do to ensure that workers and small businesses are protected? Many small businesses and franchisees were impacted by the shutdown last week. There were signs all along. The workers told me some frightening stories about changes that were made within the company structures that have resulted in this 30-day receivership. How can we allow companies to operate like that in this State? What can we do to ensure that the businesses which are dependent on bigger businesses are either secure or protected? That is probably my main question.