Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

The commuter does not mind what colour the bus is provided it is efficient, safe, reliable and economical. Dublin Bus loses a substantial amount of money every week. The Government is supposed to be in charge. Social partnership has been a valuable entity in the past number of years but this was a wild-cat action leaving 150,000 stranded. Has anybody examined a document in the files of the Department, produced by one of the Taoiseach's predecessors, Michael O'Kennedy, on strike procedures for essential services? This goes back a long way. Does the Government have a view on this? Does it believe there should be a no-strike clause for essential services? Does it believe a moratorium should be applied where a dispute will arise that could be dealt with in an intervening period to ensure the public are not disrupted in getting to and from work?

If CIE is unable to supply a proper service for the commuters of Dublin, should operators which can provide a service be brought in? Many private operators throughout the country would be more than willing to tender for consideration for new routes and provide real competition for Dublin Bus and benefit the consumer. Has the Government considered the famous O'Kennedy document, updated by the documents of the late Jim Mitchell and the late Seamus Brennan, on transport for Dublin? Has the Government considered real competition? What is the Government's view on a no-strike clause for essential services? When does it expect real competition will be provided on this route to ensure 150,000 consumers and commuters will not be stranded again?

Is it not indicative of the failure of this, the worst Government of 50 years, that it failed to put in place a procedure that allows for people to get to and from work? Harassed and pressurised though they are, they are still willing to turn up and do their duty, but the State has failed to provide a mechanism whereby essential services are protected from disruption by wild-cat strikes. That responsibility rests with the Government and I would like to hear the Taoiseach's views on how he intends to sort it out.

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