Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

My concern is that if that if there is a legislative requirement for two meetings, that becomes the norm. Article 4.3 of the directive sets out the objective which is the delivery of information at a time that enables employee representatives to study it and consult employees. If the gap between meetings is six months, that will run counter to the expressed requirement of the directive under article 4.3 and may be a barrier to communication. The Minister of State said there is the potential for more frequent meetings but I believe that with six monthly gaps, the information may well be of little value. The capacity to consult and to disseminate the information, as envisaged in the directive, might be thwarted. I ask the Minister of State to think this out again.

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