Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

While I accept that is the case, I emphasise that we have a crisis on our hands. Tourism is an important part of our economy. The regrowth of the tourism industry and the focus on Ireland as a destination have the potential to ignite a level of activity within our retail and hospitality sectors. The Minister is well aware from his work in the Department that people in the United States, in particular, have a relatively short window in which to take their vacations. They plan on the basis of certainty. If there is any uncertainty regarding a specific destination, travel agents will advise people to consider some other location. If that were to happen in the case of Ireland, it would be hugely damaging to our tourism industry. I do not think the Minister can argue that even though he is a significant shareholder in Aer Lingus and a total shareholder in the airports, this matter does not fall within his remit.

The Minister and the Minister of State, Deputy Alan Kelly, must do a great deal more to seek to put in place a framework for resolving this issue once and for all, which may require looking beyond the standard industrial machinery. The one-size-fits-all approach at the Labour Court and the Labour Relations Commission is not working in this instance and has not worked for some time.

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