Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

With respect, I am not looking for the Minister's opinion. I am certainly happy to work with him, but it is not necessary in this case. What is necessary is for him to make a decision. The arbitration decision states the parties should in the course of 2019 engage to consider the nature of an agreement to apply with effect from 1 January 2020. It is not unreasonable of me, therefore, to ask the Minister when the talks will begin. I do not think anybody needs to contact the Workplace Relations Commission. Contact should be made between the Department and the unions and it should happen as soon as possible. If the unions cannot get anywhere with the Minister, perhaps they might go to the Workplace Relations Commission, but the decision needs to be made as to when the Minister will decide to start talks. The matter has already been adjudicated on and it needs to happen this year.

See this speech in context