John Ellis (Fianna Fail)

I express my satisfaction with something that happened last week. I made a suggestion in the House that the air traffic controllers should use the available labour relations mechanisms to solve their problems. I am delighted they took our advice the next day and went that route rather than the one they had proposed to take. This shows that no matter what one does in labour affairs, it is necessary to use the available mechanisms before any other action is taken.

I ask the Minister for Transport to examine the possibility of the NRA giving some of the funds available to it to local authorities to repair national, regional and county roads damaged in the severe storms.