Eamonn Maloney (Dublin South West, Labour)
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74. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport his plans for making Dublin Bus a cost effective organisation, providing a quality service benefitting a capital city of Europe; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40727/13]

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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119. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the engagement he has had with the Dublin Bus unions and management; if he will provide an update on the current impasse in industrial relations at the company; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40836/13]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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120. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the work being done to bring a resolution to the industrial dispute at Dublin Bus; and the efforts he is making to ensure that future budgetary measures undertaken by his Department and implemented by public transport companies do not provoke further industrial unrest and strike action. [40909/13]

Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Independent)
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136. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the cost to Dublin Bus of the recent strike action and the likely implications of any future strike action to the financial wellbeing of the company. [40878/13]

Alan Kelly (Tipperary North, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 74, 119, 120 and 136 together.

Dublin Bus has incurred accumulated losses of €75m over the period 2007 to 2012, a position which is unsustainable. Minister Varadkar and myself, along with our Departmental officials, have been engaged almost constantly over the past 18 months in dealing with the financial situation in CIÉ and the subsidiary companies, including Dublin Bus, to ensure a return to financial stability in order that they can continue to provide an essential service to the public.

The Government accepted a proposal from ICTU and IBEC that a Group should be established to carry out an urgent investigation of how the Labour Court recommendation in respect of cost reduction measures in Dublin Bus can be progressed.  Mr. Noel Dowling, a former National Organiser with SIPTU, and Mr. Ultan Courtney, Managing Director of Courtney HR, were engaged by the Group to explore the issues underlying the rejection by the driver grades of the Labour Court recommendations.  They have been asked to report back to the Group in the shortest possible timescale. It is vital that this process leads to an agreement that will ensure the long-term financial stability of Dublin Bus, the public transport services that Dublin Bus provide and the jobs of workers. Further industrial unrest is not in anyone's interest. The recent three day stoppage cost the company approximately €400,000 and the loss of approximately 700,000 passenger journeys.

Dublin Bus is in a precarious financial situation and is dependent on continued bank funding. Given the pressure on the public finances, there is no possibility of additional funding by the Exchequer. The cost savings recommended by the Labour Court have to be implemented. The company has been very patient in trying to find a way to do this in agreement with its employees; but the process to achieve this cannot be infinite. While I acknowledge that no worker wishes to be on strike and all sides have made sacrifices, the future of the company is at stake and the savings identified by the Labour Court will have to be found no matter what.