Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)

-----under pressure for a short duration, a mechanism is in place whereby in consultation and discussion with all interested parties, an arrangement may be reached for a period to allow those concerned to get over a hump or difficulty. That is the only purpose of the consideration of an inability to pay clause. People should focus on what it is trying to achieve, that is, to protect employers and employees and to ensure opportunities still exist rather than to allow a business to fold because it is going through a very short period of difficulty. We are all aware it is easier to protect and retain jobs than to create new ones, especially in a downturn. For this reason people should reflect on the matter and not try to inflame the debate to the point where people are being accused of a race to the bottom. This Government has a good track record in creating employment and protecting the rights of employees over the years and we should reflect on this.

I thank the Deputies for the broad support for the legislation. It is part of a plank of legislation that makes up the commitments of Towards 2016. We wish to ensure the legislation goes through the Houses and we welcome the broad support of everyone. We wish to ensure it has a smooth passage and that it comes out the other side with the support of all political parties. I refer to the difficulties with unions at present. The Government's door is always open for discussions, even if Fine Gael accuses us of discussing too much with the unions, we are available-----

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