Paul Murphy (Dublin South West, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

The reason the discussions at the WRC did not reach agreement was because the management proposal was extremely aggressive. In real terms, it was effectively a wage cut. There was an official nominal increase of 1.5%. However, there were 18 conditions attached, including a reduction in contract hours, accepting outsourcing, forced redeployment and freezing increments. We spoke to workers for whom that would mean an effective pay cut of at least €60 per week. The workers are absolutely correct to take action.

Obviously, the Minister does the usual routine of Ministers for Transport, Tourism and Sport when industrial situations arise, namely, to say this has nothing to do with them. The problem the Minister has is that he has a report on his desk, the rail review from the NTA, which recommends that €125 million be given to Irish Rail to compensate for underfunding from 2010 to 2016, inclusive. It would make a significant difference in terms of the legacy debt of Irish Rail, which stands at €160 million and which is clearly a large part of the context of this discussion. Will the Minister agree to at least do that?

See this speech in context