Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

There has been appalling spinning of this story from the beginning. We agreed with the social partners to introduce legislation pertaining to agency workers. As soon as the ink was dry on the agreement the trade union movement stated that it was not enough and sought more. It is entitled to do so. We had the legislative template ready to introduce an agency Bill after the last agreement. However, the terms of the agreement were not sufficient for the trade union movement, which sought additional terms of pay parity. Now, it has moved onto equality across all issues.

Ireland has no veto powers in the European Council of Ministers because it is not strong enough. However, Ireland is capable of contributing to a solution that does not put Ireland at a competitive disadvantage and that allows Ireland similar rights to other countries in terms of collective agreements, exemptions and opt-outs. A memorandum will be sent to the Government and we are available to discuss with the trade unions and employers the basis of an agreed resolution.

I welcome Deputy Penrose's belated acceptance of the importance of labour market flexibility, something that was absent from the debate two weeks ago during Private Members' business. I hope Deputy Penrose cites the rest of the Davy report, which gives a positive picture of the future of the Irish economy and refers to the successful policies we have pursued in employment and education. We are anxious for balance, allowing us to protect the rights of workers, which we are keen to do, while maintaining the impetus for job creation. We will not tolerate exploitation.

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