Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

Can the Taoiseach explain why the Tánaiste, rather than himself, announced Government policy on this issue? At the SIPTU conference, the Tánaiste spoke of structured dialogue to be announced in the next month and which would begin with social partners. In the Taoiseach's reply, there was a studied avoidance of any phrase relating to a formal mechanism, which I asked about in Question No. 3, or to a structured dialogue. The Croke Park agreement is at the heart of social partnership, was a product of its dynamic and was an important part of securing some of the substantial agreements relating to the public finances in the last number of years. While facilitating social partners and articulating their views forcibly, either in meetings or on the streets, it generated a consensus around the necessity to take very strong decisions regarding the public finances and in achieving progress on that front.

The Taoiseach says he is not returning to social partnership in any formal sense. He needs to be very clear about that. He used the phrase, "We will not be returning to the social partnership model as applied previously" but we do not know what that means. How can hard negotiations or any sequel to the Croke Park agreement, in terms of its efficacy in the overall debate on the public finances, begin? On the joint labour committees, a Bill published by Fianna Fáil was debated in this House prior to the summer recess. Sinn Féin also published a Bill on the matter and the Government is soon to publish a Bill on it.

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