Michael Ahern (Cork East, Fianna Fail)

The 1971 Act will be reviewed as agreed under Sustaining Progress.

I thank Senators Coghlan, McDowell, Leyden, Mooney and White for their contributions on this important Bill which will benefit the pay and other conditions of employment of 70,000 workers who are currently employed on fixed-term work contracts. I hope the Bill will go a long way towards realising the main aims of the directive, namely, to improve the quality of fixed-term work, to do away with the discriminatory treatment of workers on fixed-term contracts and to improve and to limit the use by employers of successive fixed-term contracts. The proposals in the Bill were given a good examination by those Senators who spoke. I look forward to Committee Stage in a few weeks' time.

Senator White mentioned an interesting subject. Perhaps we can discuss that another day.