Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)

There are many precedents in this area. Several years ago, Thomas Cook workers were in the same situation and left in the same disgusting and disgraceful fashion. When they correctly occupied the premises, the Garda was sent in with battering rams to break down the doors. The Thomas Cook workers were paraded in front of their lordships at the High Court and threatened with Mountjoy jail if they persisted to fight for their rights. I am afraid the law, on balance, is on the side of the bosses, employers and the unscrupulous vulture capital companies. The workers in the La Senza case are chasing their statutory entitlements from the taxpayer while Lion Capital walks off with massive profits. This is not a matter for dreaming about but in which action needs to be taken now. We want to know what the Minister of State will do today and tomorrow.

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