Michael McCarthy (Labour)

I appeal to the Government to ask the Taoiseach to get directly involved in regard to the negotiations between the unions and Government to determine how we can get out of the current industrial action. We must bear in mind that last December it was the Government that evicted those organisations from Government Buildings. We warned at that time that if that course of action was followed in the manner in which it was we would be in the middle of industrial turmoil caused largely by Government.

We must bear in mind the recent developments. We have seen a disgusting increase in salary for staff in Anglo Irish Bank and an equally unjustifiable increase in salaries for the directors of NAMA yet we expect nurses, gardaí, teachers and local authority workers to fund that. If the Taoiseach will not get stuck in directly to address this matter it will only get worse.