Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

I also wish to raise the issue of the Debenhams workers, because I do not think we got an answer that we can stand by. Would the Taoiseach condemn the arrests of the workers this morning? Is it now the policy of the gardaí to arrest workers engaging in peaceful industrial action? To my knowledge, this has never happened before. Occupations have been broken up and workers have been arrested and, indeed, jailed, but only on the basis of a fine, court order or injunction, none of which was issued in this case. Workers were arrested on the basis of trespassing under the public order Act and an act of criminal damage is being investigated by the gardaí in Store Street.

Former Debenhams workers are entitled to protest at their disgraceful treatment by a major company, which is still trading and which, as has been mentioned, has £94 million in the bank. We are dealing with a tactical insolvency and the use of the Covid-19 pandemic as a cover. The actions of the liquidator, KPMG, in withdrawing what was a measly offer is also to be condemned.

I note the Taoiseach's point that the expectations of the workers were not very high. To get one extra day's pay per year of service is an insult to those workers and they were rightly very enraged about it.

The situation could have been avoided if the outgoing Government, which the Taoiseach supported in the confidence and supply agreement, had legislated to implement the recommendations of the Duffy Cahill report. This report was commissioned by the then Minister for Jobs, Enterprise, and Innovation in 2015 and presented to that Government in 2016. The Taoiseach is correct that Mandate is constrained by having to work within the legislation but that has to be amended with immediate effect. We have been here over the past number of weeks bringing in emergency legislation, which the Opposition has allowed to go through because it related to Covid-19. This legislation for these workers and for future workers should be brought in as a matter of urgency in the next two weeks. Will the Taoiseach give a commitment to introduce this legislation to implement all nine recommendations in that report as a matter of urgency? There may well be a tsunami of closures, bankruptcies and insolvencies as a result of the economic crisis caused by Covid-19. The Taoiseach needs to be prepared and to take action to legislate for the Duffy Cahill report now.

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