Michelle Mulherin (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Paddy Burke for sharing his time. I welcome the Minister to the House. Many fine points have been made on this issue and, for the most part, I agree with them. I commend Senator Ray Butler on bringing forward and spearheading this proposal at this juncture. This issue has been talked about for years.

We have approximately 380,000 self-employed. When I meet sole traders in the run up to an election or during the term of a Government they have a beef with this issue and I can understand the reason for that. The responsibility they carry has been well articulated, as has the risk they take and when they lose they tend to lose it all. For the most part, we are talking about sole traders who do not have the protection of the corporate veil. They are not big companies but small and medium enterprises. They are the people who make sure all the bills are paid and they may never get paid themselves.When they end up going to the wall, they have nothing. Whereas those in a failed business may be entitled to a means-tested payment, having wound up their business, they then must go through all the loops and the necessary paperwork to get a payment from the Department of Social Protection. However, as they had paid their staff, including making PRSI contributions on their behalf, the staff will get their social welfare payments. That does not smack of fairness considering the burden of responsibility of employers.

I agree with the point made by Senator Paddy Burke. The downturn in the economy impacted heavily on the retail sector and on sub-contractors. When they let people go, they paid out redundancies. At first the State reduced its share of the redundancy payment before it ceased the rebate to employers who paid redundancy. The employers paid redundancy from their own savings and out of their own pockets. We must treat people fairly. Workers contribute and employers contribute to PRSI. Sometimes the system is skewed in regard to the self-employed sector. Employers are so busy running their businesses and trying to keep everything going, they find they do not have a voice.

I say to the Minister "Well done". He is making a fine move and it will be remembered by people who find themselves in the very difficult situation of seeking a State payment.