Paddy Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to say a few words on this section. I also welcome the Minister of State to the House. I would like to say that whatever the Minister of State does here, she will be setting a precedent for whatever may come in the future. Therefore, she has to tread very carefully. She should listen very carefully to the very serious questions and issues that have been raised by many Senators.

There are two aspects to this: first, the redundancy level that is being paid to the people who are employed and what their futures will be; and second, what the farm owners will do and the compensation that will be paid to them. It is only right that those workers who are there and have made those businesses successful would be properly treated and looked after. I agree with other speakers that the two-week statutory redundancy should be increased substantially for those people. I have had many businesses over many years and the hardest thing of all is to close a business. Everybody comes at you – creditors, bankers, tax people, redundancy, you name it. Then you have to consider your future – what will you do afterwards?

I take it that there are only three farmers involved in this. They have to pay the statutory redundancy. I will only deal with the statutory redundancy here. We have a former Minister here in the House with us. If they cannot afford to pay the statutory redundancy, it will be taken out of their assets. If their assets do not cover the statutory redundancy, a charge will be put on their home. That is the reality of people having to paying statutory redundancy and not being able to afford to pay it. This is completely wrong. I am bringing forward a Private Members’ Bill to safeguard the family home. It should be taken out of the equation completely. In this case, the Department should pay all of the redundancy. The Department is causing this to be closed down. As Senator Boyhan has said, whether we like it or do not like it or whether we are for it or against it, that is not the question. The Department has taken action. It is closing down a business in this case.

A business can last for five or ten years or even 100 years. In some cases, one can have quite a number of staff for quite a long period of time. Someday there could be a crash, there could be a pandemic such as we have had or, as in this case, the Department could come in with a heavy hand, close the business down and require the owner to pay the statutory redundancy. In relation to statutory redundancy, how does somebody who sets up a business put away two weeks per employee every year for that day? It is impossible to do. If one does put two weeks away, one is taxed on it. One has to pay the taxes as well as put aside the two weeks. Therefore, it is not a simple science. I think the Minister of State should listen to the very many legitimate questions that have been raised here and come back in her own time on Report Stage. There is no doubt the House will support her, but all reasonable steps have to be taken for all sides in this case.