Bríd Smith (Dublin South Central, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I am impressed the Minister started off his speech by saying his first priority is social justice and social rights. I would not expect anything else from the leader of the Green Party. He finished with more or less the same sentiment. In between, however, he read out some Civil Service claptrap that makes no sense to me. I do not think the Minister understood it. Does he expect 1,000 workers and their families to understand it when we know there is stock in those stores, which those workers are protecting, that is worth the same value of their redundancy payments?

I ask the Minister again which side he is on. If it is the side of social justice and social rights, and the law has not provided for it, then the law is an ass and the Minister and the Government can sit down with KPMG reminding it that the Government is its best customer. The Government pays KPMG millions for every other project it wants to engage in. Therefore, KPMG must listen to the Government. Tell KPMG to negotiate with the workers and that this State will step aside in terms of what it is owed as a creditor and allow the workers to be first creditor because this State failed to implement the Duffy Cahill report. Now, the Minister is making a promise to do it. That is great. Do it. However, it will be too late for the Debenhams workers so the Minister needs to make a special case. He can do somersaults for vested interests in this country. Do somersaults for the workers in this country. There are 1,000 of them and their families and they must be looked after.

See this speech in context