Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I asked the Taoiseach about starting talks. The Taoiseach ignored that question. It was a simple proposition. I asked him to start talks to try to find a pathway through these difficulties.

The Taoiseach has said there needs to be fairness for all workers. That is the exact opposite of what the Government is doing. The Government stance is untenable and I believe the Taoiseach knows it. He knows that, as we face into the winter, citizens will be alarmed at the potential for doctors and nurses to be on picket lines when we face into an accident and emergency department crisis. We know that the largest public sector unions are either balloting for industrial action or indicating that is what they will do in future. The Taoiseach has offered no solutions in any of his utterances so far. He has not even suggested a process to find a solution, which is what I was asking him to do. The Taoiseach might think of a different solution from what we might think up, but the process to find that has to begin.

It is also clear that the Lansdowne Road agreement has run out of road. I am saying to the Taoiseach that the process of reaching a new agreement must start. Facing down workers and their unions will not work. The Taoiseach should leave the macho posturing to the Fianna Fáil leader. Let him do all that strutting his stuff. The Taoiseach is the Head of Government. He should start the talking now and set the example. We need a conversation and a negotiation. Will the Taoiseach accept the need for dialogue without delay?

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