Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I have regular interaction with the unions. Today, we had a Labour Employer Economic Forum meeting, LEEF. Patricia King, Laura Bambrick and Liam Berney were on the call. We did not go into much detail on low pay. We were talking about various other issues. I understand their position, which is that they do not accept the recommendation. Looking back over the years, recommendations have ranged from 10 cent to 60 cent, and on all occasions in the past, unions and employers accepted the recommendation, as did the Government, whether it was at the higher level or the lower level. On this occasion, the unions have decided to withdraw from the Low Pay Commission, which is regrettable. I have said to them that the programme for Government envisages us moving towards a living wage.

There is a question of how the living wage is defined. Using the UK model, the living wage would be lower and obviously nobody wants that model. There is a different model, run largely by the Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice and others, which excludes employers. I do not think we can do that either. We will have to come up with our own model of what a living wage is and how it can be phased in. I would like the Low Pay Commission to be the body that does that, and therefore it needs to have union representatives at it. I would hope to start that conversation with them with a view to them being able to re-engage with the commission and being part of designing that living wage for Ireland. Membership turns over in a few months anyway, so that might be the opportunity.