Olivia Mitchell (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

When the arbitration board ruled against his office, the Minister said he would speak to the unions. Has such a meeting taken place? The union leadership never anticipated that particular clause in Sustaining Progress would have this impact and prevent the proper governance of the country. I do not believe the unions expected that or could stand over it themselves, nor could they stand over the payment of benchmarking to people who have performed so appallingly against the public interest. Has the Minister spoken to the unions? Apart from the fact that they never intended this to be the outcome, they must see that their own members want to take driving tests and that their own members are being injured and killed on the roads. It is in everybody's interest that this matter is resolved. Has the Minister spoken to the unions since the arbitration hearings?

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