Aidan Davitt (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I was shocked this morning by a matter that I was aware was rumbling on but that seems to have come to a head, namely, the actions of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission against the Restaurants Association of Ireland. There seems to be a concerted campaign against the restaurant industry by the State body for quite a while. I ask both parties to sit down and tease out the issues. The commission is a State entity and it seems to be hounding the association and its members. The membership has come under pressure since the decision to raise the VAT rate on hospitality businesses by 50%. The association has spoken of a general increase in wages in the sector of 20% in recent years. The industry is having a tough time already.

The Restaurants Association of Ireland has been under investigation and has had many demands placed on it in respect of having staff undergo competition training and making regular reports to the commission. Strange requests and demands are being made of an organisation which represents a large number of people and businesses, many of which are relatively small. It certainly provides the best information it can and it is very helpful. The commission would make better use of taxpayers' money if it were studying several problems facing us. Personal contract plans, PCPs, for example, have been discussed here on a number of occasions. These loans are causing tremendous distress to many people. In recent months, a scandal has emerged regarding various medical parts and medicines. This has been revealed in investigative journalism in The Irish Timesand also by the BBC. There are many issues on which the commission could spend time that would be more productive from the perspective of the taxpayer. It may be worthwhile to call the commission before the Committee of Public Accounts to determine what work it is doing. I am just curious about it. I genuinely believe the commission is singling out the Restaurants Association of Ireland, slightly unfairly. I hope that whatever information is given is correct. Having read it, I certainly feel it is. If the commission believes there is something amiss, perhaps its staff could sit down with the staff of the association and sort these matters out.