Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

If the HSE had the reforming zeal it purports to have, it would have consulted the pharmacists prior to any unilateral move. That is why we are seeking to ensure that by amending the Competition Act, organisations such as the IPU will at least have the right to negotiate a position that will not leave them stranded on this or any other issue.

If the concepts of engagement and social partnership are to mean anything, the Government will at least afford them that right. This unilateral action by the Health Service Executive, HSE, runs contrary to long-held beliefs that the primacy of negotiation with any representative body is paramount. The Labour Party seeks to defend that right.

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