Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

It is a great pleasure to welcome David Begg on behalf of the Fianna Fáil group. I compliment you, a Chathaoirligh, and the Leader for not only facilitating this outstanding presentation from Mr. Begg, but facilitating presentations from other leaders from business and other walks of life over the past six months.

Mr. Begg has had a long and outstanding career in public life. He is very much the face of organised labour, representing hundred of thousands of people. He holds an onerous and important position, which he carries out with great moderation. Whenever a storm is brewing, he is a calming influence, although I have no doubt that there is plenty of steel behind that calm.

Congress must be recognised for the positive contribution it has made, particularly in recent years during this awful recession. If and when we pull out of the recession - I am sure that we will - congress's role will be looked at and great credit will be due to it for the manner in which it has played its part in a disciplined and patriotic way.

The 1913 Lock-out is obviously one of the great events in Irish history. It was for a long time overshadowed by 1916, which has been the main focus of commemorations down through the years. The 100th anniversary gives us an opportunity to have a wider look at what went on during that tumultuous period. While the Lock-out ended in defeat it was not ultimately a defeat because it highlighted a number of issues, including the appalling poverty in Dublin, that had been swept under the carpet. It was also a success in so far as it taught workers the importance of organised labour. As Mr. Begg mentioned, it was the bed on which the future of organised trade unions was made. Without the 1913 Lock-out that may never have happened. One only has to read or watch the plays of Séan O'Casey to realise the awful plight of the people at that time.

I am most interested in the international element to the 1913 Lock-out and the help that trade unionists received from other countries, particularly from the United Kingdom. Its trade union movement was very much in its infancy as well. It probably started in the London dock strike of 1889, which was organised by Ben Tillett and others. Subsequent to that event, Keir Hardie was elected as the first Labour Member of Parliament. The UK was not too far ahead of us, so the manner in which they assisted the struggling workers in Dublin was exemplary and should be noted. It is a pity that at the time some elements of the Catholic Church tried to intervene and prevent that assistance because they thought that some kind of proselytising was occurring, which was a rather short-sighted approach.

I have one or two questions to pose to Mr. Begg. First, I know that we live in more subtle times and we would not want to have fellows like William Martin Murphy around, but are there resonances of such confrontations ongoing when the union is trying to settle a point of issue with employers? Will that confrontation always be there? Is it part of life that employers want to pay as little as they can, while workers will try to get as much as they can? Is it an inevitable part of the relationship?

Second, Mr. Begg, referred to Northern Ireland. I know that the huge sectarian divide up there must have been impossible for anyone to bridge, but I have often wondered whether the trade union movement did enough to bring the sides together because it was not the wealthy Catholics and Protestants who were battling it out, but the poor. I have often felt that trade unions should have been more proactive. Finally, I am privileged and grateful to have been nominated by congress, along with other Senators here, such as Senator Brennan, to contest the Senate elections for the past two elections. Congress has had the power to nominate seven Senators since the Constitution. Does Mr. Begg find the engagement with the Oireachtas of use to congress? Does he anticipate in the event that there is no longer a Seanad that he will have the same sense of engagement with a single chamber Parliament, namely the Dáil? As Mr. Begg knows, the Seanad is, 100 years on, facing its own lock-out. Thankfully, that decision will not be made by William Martin Murphy but by the people, and we will abide by their decision. I have no wish to put words into Mr. Begg's mouth, but does he think that the Seanad has been a useful conduit between congress and Government?