Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

Will the Taoiseach detail his Government's plans to deal with the displacement of 543 workers by Irish Ferries Limited? He should have a note of it because he will remember this was a significant company which served the strategic interests of this country well before it was sold off to friends of Fianna Fáil by the then Minister for Transport, Deputy Brennan. Having gotten away with it in the case of the displacement of workers on the MV Normandy, the company now proposes to make redundant the entire crew and to register the vessel in the Bahamas under a flag of convenience. As a result, 543 workers are displaced.

I read in the newspapers that it is proposed to give them €6 million in taxpayers' money as a contribution towards the redundancy fund. The unions and wider economic interests want to know what action the Government intends to take. What are the implications of this for social partnership? This is a race to the bottom. We have seldom seen anything so blatant as dismissing an entire workforce in order to employ slave labour from outside the State at €3.60 per hour.

The Taoiseach has often told us how expert he is in industrial relations, which he is. I always thought that, in order to be redundant, the job could not be filled. However, these 543 jobs are being filled. Is the Government satisfied that they are eligible for redundancy and that the taxpayers' money which is proposed to be paid into the fund is appropriate? Has advice been taken from the Attorney General on that particular issue?

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