Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My difficulty is that it could have happened again at the weekend. Thankfully, the employers who have taken over Arnotts are committed to growing the business and employment in it, but five months on the same situation could have been unveiled at the weekend. On ICTU's proposals regarding facilitating a consultation period before redundancies, for instance, there are issues such as this could be done to try to delay proceedings.

I understand the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, ODCE, is separate, but does the Minister of State have a timeline for when its investigations will be completed? Is the ODCE aware of the significance of this case in terms of the message it sends because it is not being dealt with while the office is looking into it? The message it sends is that it is okay to treat workers like something on a peg in a shop that can be just thrown away overnight and that unscrupulous business people can get away with that behaviour, which is unfair to workers. We know that the reality is different, but while Natrium has got away with it - five months on it looks as if it has - all of the agencies involved in investigating the matter should be aware of its urgency and the necessity of preventing it from recurring. As regards the Minister of State's responsibilities, with legislation being brought forward, how does he respond to the various ICTU proposals revolving around a consultation period?

See this speech in context