Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I formally second Senator Craughwell's amendment and thank the Leader for his experience in this regard. There are a number of angles on this issue. The idea of worker directors was that people who actually did the work would have a seat on the board. These are State organisations. I do not know how it fell through the holes in the system that there is no such provision. The fear is that the eight people appointed by the county manager would have no experience of running the harbour. It is important on any board that people who actually do the work should have an input. I agree with the Leader that it would be a poor board that would not have that experience brought in for the purposes of board meetings. How can we ensure that will happen? We have mentioned before that the classic case must be "H.M.S. Pinafore", with the line "Stick close to your desks and never go to sea, And you all may be rulers of the Queen's Navee!" If there is such experience, do not give all responsibility to landlubbers. In the case of "H.M.S. Pinafore", the posts on the board were reserved for aristocracy-----