Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

The Taoiseach's letter to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions was in response to its proposals on job creation and a protection plan. ICTU has indicated that his letter was too vague. Can he be specific on what ICTU claims is the need to ensure the social welfare system supports alternatives to redundancy? Will he support ending the requirement that workers must be fully unemployed before receiving welfare, as this clearly removes any possibility of training? Will he support basing the social welfare payment on lost earnings, rather than on the number of days lost? Where workers are in receipt of family income supplement, will the Government allow the retention of this much needed payment where the hours worked are fewer than 19 per week? What about the potential to modify the mortgage interest supplement and other secondary benefits? The rules pertaining to both of these should support alternatives to redundancy.

ICTU and a number of other concerned bodies have put forward proposals on the economy. Our party put forward 80 proposals on getting Ireland back to work through job creation, job retention, creating sustainability and helping people to avoid joining the ever lengthening dole queues. While I welcome the indication of the establishment of a scheme to subsidise workers in viable businesses struggling to survive in the current recession — a proposal we had put forward — we need to see greater monetary support for such a proposition. How quickly will the Taoiseach be in a position to outline the modalities of its introduction? How will it work? How will people access it? How does the Government intend to bring into effect this proposal?

There has been a great effort made by ICTU and many others in submitting proposals, including our own submission before the emergency budget in April. The Government has not yet presented a distinct set of intentions — we can only propose, it makes the decisions — regarding job retention and job creation. I purposely put job retention first with the impending loss of a further 320 jobs in Bus Éireann. That is just one example. What is the Taoiseach going to do in regard to that vital public service as an indictor of his real intent to save jobs and sustain public services?

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