Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I, too, thank Senator Quinn for bringing forward this short but important legislation. In terms of value per line of legislation it gives better value, like his former business, in that it does a great deal.

The Fianna Fáil Party supports this Bill which seeks to address what the judge recognised as unintended anomalies and consequences of the 2003 Act. I note the judge does not make any major criticism of the 2003 Act and I point out that it was the first time legislation on employment permits was put in place in respect of non-nationals working in Ireland and set out in dedicated primary legislation, with penalties for non-compliance. Every country needs that and it was done in that context and in the context particularly of the enlargement of the EU which took place a year later.

As other speakers have mentioned, the Migrant Rights Council of Ireland and other organisations in that field have done tremendous work because the facts of this particular case were shocking and outrageous. I wonder about the employment of non-nationals across a range of sectors in Ireland today and whether there is a reason for them being predominant in certain sectors and if that reason is a breach of employment law and of employment protections. Is it easier to get away with breach of employment law and minimum wage rules with foreign nationals? I suspect it is and that many foreign nationals working here are paid below the minimum wage, which is outrageous and shocking.

We support the Bill. As Senator Quinn outlined in detail, the Bill seeks to amend the Employment Permits Act 2003 so as to provide a defence to a foreign national who is charged with being employed without a valid work permit as it already provides a similar defence in respect of the employer. The Bill enables an employee who does not have the valid work permit to seek redress and enforce his employment rights provided he or she can demonstrate that liability for failure to secure a work permit does not rest with him or her.

It was a welcome decision of Mr. Justice Hogan, who is an innovative man in many ways, to forward this decision to the Oireachtas prompting us to take action if we believed it was necessary. There was no directive from the judge to the Oireachtas to take action on this, rather he said that he was engaging in a conversation between two branches of power in this country. That was innovative and it has prompted Senator Quinn to write this Bill and has prompted a debate in the Seanad on whether we should change the law. It was the right approach by Mr. Justice Hogan in this important case. He was not telling us what to do but merely highlighting an issue to us that is within the domain of this Oireachtas and this Seanad to address.

I object to people talking about an opportunity to debate and to show our outrage. The Seanad is about legislating and changing the law. That is the power that we have.