Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I am amused these days when those in Fianna Fáil raise issues to do with business and the economy. They remind me of the B-movie villain who always returns to the scene of the crime with his hands in his pockets, whistling and asking innocently what has happened and whether there is some way he could possibly help. Let us make no mistake, Fianna Fáil is the villain of this particular piece. It is single-handedly responsible for wrecking our economy and for driving many businesses to the wall. Those in the party may now act the part of concerned onlookers but the memories of the people are not short and I do not believe anyone will be taken in by such brazen attempts to ignore the party's all-too-recent history. Much of the damage done to our economy and our indigenous businesses was caused by the previous Government's inability to stop pandering to special interest groups, a habit which the party responsible has yet to shake. Businesses and banks sought light-touch regulation and the party opposite delivered it. It constantly sought exemptions from rules which were in the public interest and which were the norm in other countries. Those in Fianna Fáil are at it again today and they were at it last night with their attempt to shoot down a proposal that employers should contribute modestly to statutory sick pay, a proposal which will do nothing but bring us into line with normal practices throughout Europe.

Chambers Ireland does much good work in every town and city throughout the country. The organisation should know better but it released a statement today criticising the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, and suggested that Ireland's situation is not unique but similar to that of France and Italy. This statement does not add up. In France employers must top up illness benefit to normal pay levels and in Italy there is provision for 180 days of statutory sick pay, similar to arrangements in the United Kingdom, our closest trading partner. This is the system that pertains a few miles north of us in Northern Ireland. If Chambers Ireland wishes to go down this road, I would be perfectly happy to support it.

It is no longer sustainable or affordable for the taxpayer to foot the burden of illness benefit in this country. According to figures issued to me in reply to a parliamentary question late last year, in 2010 it cost the taxpayer almost €1 billion for almost 26 million sick days. The taxpayer is predominately funding illness benefit and it follows that there is little or no financial incentive to tackle absenteeism. In the Netherlands before the introduction of a statutory sick pay scheme some 8% of the workforce were out on sick leave on any given day. It reached the point where the Netherlands was known as the sick man of Europe. Since the inception of an employer-funded scheme in the Netherlands, the Dutch rate has halved to 4%. This has led to productivity and profitability gains. We should move beyond the glib soundbites of the issue of statutory sick pay, some of which we have been treated to here in recent days. We should have an honest, open and frank debate, one that is evidence based. I firmly believe based on the evidence I have seen that the introduction of statutory sick pay will ultimately provide a win win situation for business and the taxpayer. I urge everyone in the House who has contributed to the debate to show responsibility in terms of the discussion.

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