Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chair for the opportunity to speak in this Private Members' debate on the 1913 Lock-out and workers' rights in Ireland of 2013. I thank and commend my colleague, Deputy Joe Higgins, for introducing this motion and this debate. It is an important debate as it allows all of us time to remember the men and women of 1913 and their great struggle and also shows how we can learn from the experiences of history. James Connolly and James Larkin should also be remembered, and the huge sacrifices they made for the people of this island.

Some will say we have come a long way and in many ways we have. However, the vision and experience of the struggle should also be a reminder that in Ireland of 2013 - the world of 2013 - we must still fight, not only for the 400,000 people unemployed and those living in poverty but also for those on low wages. Tonight's motion is about the vision and leadership mentioned in the text of the motion. It is also about the rights of workers, disabled people, the carers and people struggling with mortgages and on low incomes. Connolly and Larkin would be horrified by the Ireland of today where so many people are suffering amid all the wealth around us.

It is an honour for me, as a former branch secretary of Dublin City North INTO, and a former delegate to the Dublin Council of Trade Unions, to address this Dáil. These organisations have played a major role in Irish society and in creating activists and leaders in the trade union movement. Many of those activists have been elected to this Oireachtas which is a great privilege and honour. When I heard the motion would be about the 1913 Lock-out I wanted to mention one person in particular. I immediately remembered my late colleague, former Deputy Tony Gregory, who was also very proud of his own local history, in particular that of Dublin's north inner city. I wish to pay tribute to and commend him. I have fond memories of Tony being part of the celebrations in the city when he used to dress up in his Irish Citizen Army uniform, and the great fun and enjoyment he got from that. That was a tradition carried out in the inner city which links into tonight's motion. I know my colleague, Deputy Higgins, will also be aware of this.

In 2013 the ethos driving the bailout of the financial market system and the austerity agenda is exactly the same as the one that drove the Dublin employers of 1913, namely, the protection of power for profit and the profit system. The Labour Party, which came into being as a result of workers' struggles in the years preceding 1913, is guilty of abject betrayal in driving the austerity agenda, at enormous cost to working people, the unemployed, pensioners and the poor. We should look closely at what is going on in Ireland in 2013, where the expenditure of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in direct assistance to households has increased by 56% between 2008 and 2011. In 2011, the society spent more than €22 million on food and cash assistance. More than €10 million was spent on helping households with their energy costs, those who were let down by the State and broader society. Those who were least well off before the economic crisis remain the same. Their struggles have worsened due to cutbacks in the support and services on which they rely. Those who have lost jobs, had business failures, have seen significant falls in their income or are affected by over-indebtedness require short and medium-term to longer-term support to ensure they are prevented from falling into long-term unemployment and poverty.

The cumulative impact of austerity measures to date on individual families and communities has been devastating. I strongly oppose any further reductions in social expenditure because the people we assist, those who are struggling in Ireland, have suffered enough. I strongly support the motion. Let us remember the men and women of the 1913 Lock-out and James Connolly and James Larkin. Let us also remember the late and great Tony Gregory. Let us remind ourselves we all have a duty to stand up for the men and women of no property in 2013.

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