Eamon Ryan (Dublin South, Green Party)

I commend my colleagues in the Technical Group, and the Independents in the Dáil, for tabling this important and timely motion, which we in the Green Party wholeheartedly support.

It is interesting to listen to Deputy Cowley talking about the conservative nature of Irish politics; I agree with him. One of the definitions of conservatism is the sense that things cannot change and that, if the market decides something, we must unfortunately accept it. While the Taoiseach and various Ministers of State have talked up their concerns on this issue, from this side of the House we hear them say that unfortunately there is nothing they can do and nothing can change.

The first thing that must change is the current culture of this country which allows this sort of development. In many ways, we are powerless against the forces of globalisation and the way in which the international market changes matters. However, we have a collective choice as a people, regarding how exactly that develops and what culture becomes established here. I fear that, in the Irish Ferries dispute, we are looking at a real loss in culture.

It was interesting, as a member of the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, to visit the new maritime college in Cork last year and witness the great pride in it. We recognised its great importance to an island nation. To point to our status as an island nation may be a cliché but it is an important reality. In the future, as our energy scenario unfolds, it will be even more relevant as we become increasingly dependent on sea routes for our future economic and social well-being. In these circumstances, we must recognise that to lack the skill base of a maritime workforce whose members build up experience and knowledge over many years will be a significant loss.

The Government has presided over a cultural change in the last eight years which is epitomised by certain executives earning remarkable wages while workers at the bottom of the corporate structure earn a tiny fraction of them. This is an unacceptable culture and the situation at Irish Ferries is a continuation of that. It is the worst possible development in the culture of the divided, unequal society this Government has allowed to grow.

The management of Irish Ferries must answer for the wage levels it is willing to promote. Moreover, it must also answer for its actions. There must be a change in culture and management in Irish business. It seems clear that investment decisions by management rather than the actions of the workforce led the company into the current difficulties with which it claims to struggle. For a company to react to such poor management decisions and investment practice by immediately opting to procure cheaper labour to relieve the problems created by the management is a disgraceful development in the culture of Irish management.

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