: Deputy O'Donnell raised the question of the Industrial action taken by the Irish Post Office Engineering Union. It will be agreed that a great deal has already been said on behalf of all the parties involved in or affected by this dispute and I see no useful purpose in raking over the issues and trying to apportion blame. It can be safely left to the good sense of both sides to learn from experience. Now is the time for looking forward and I have confidence in the ability of the people concerned on both the staff and the management side to face the future in a spirit of goodwill and co-operation and to work together to recover the lost ground and to develop an efficient telecommunications system which will satisfy the requirements of the users.
With regard to the present situation, the discussions on the claim are continuing at the departmental conciliation council under the chairmanship of the director of the Labour Court's conciliation service. In accordance with the arrangements accepted for the ending of the industrial action, these discussions are proceeding as quickly as possible and, of course, it would be open to the union if they were not satisfied with the progress to bring the matter to the attention of the Minister. Under the terms of the scheme of conciliation and arbitration the proceedings of the departmental council are confidential and it would be inappropriate, therefore, to comment further on the claim at this stage. Needless to say, I hope that the claim will be settled quickly and I am sure the Deputy would agree with me.
The Deputy also asked a question about the review of the staff rules and regulations and the mediation committee. The various proposals which were put forward by the ICTU for the ending of the industrial action included a recommendation that there would be a review of the grievance and disciplinary procedures and rules and regulations which had been under consideration by the Departmental conciliation council and that this should be continued under a mediator nominated by the chairman of the Labour Court. This recommendation was accepted both by the staff and the Department and this review is proceeding. The review is intended to be wide-ranging and I would hope that when the council have completed their deliberations an improved framework of staff relations will be agreed.
The proposals also included a recommendation that the existing grievance procedures be improved by the provision of a mediation committee also presided over by a mediator appointed by the chairman of the Labour Court. This committee has been established by agreement and problems which could not be resolved in direct discussions have been referred to the mediation committee. Any issue of difficulty which, having been processed through the grievance committee, still remains unresolved can in future be referred by either side to the mediation committee and if agreement cannot be reached then the mediator will make a recommendation.
As the House is aware, the Government announced in their pre-election manifesto their intention of examining the desirability of giving autonomy to the telecommunications service and of modernising the postal service. I have been giving detailed consideration to both these matters and I expect to make an announcement in respect of these very shortly.
The other matter raised by the Deputy related to broadcasting. Pirate broadcasting is in the news. The operators of these stations have been securing publicity that conveys a sympathetic and, might I say, even an heroic impression of their activities. Of course, they themselves have been using the airwaves for this purpose. What is overlooked is the fact that these operators are acting in open defiance of the law. They have appropriated any frequencies that suit their purposes. They are operating on whatever power they choose for themselves. They are a potential menace to radio services generally. The question of introducing fresh legislation to help combat pirate broadcasting is under consideration at present. It will be appreciated that I am unable at this stage to give details of what will be covered in any draft legislation on this matter, but I would hope to introduce a Bill in the next session.
RTE's proposals for a local radio service for Dublin and other radio developments are still under consideration. The issues involved are somewhat complex and certain aspects of long-term broadcasting policy also have to be taken into consideration. I am dealing with that as rapidly as I can.
Deputy McMahon raised the question of the telephone service in the new housing areas. He will appreciate that very considerable difficulty is experienced in meeting demands for telephones in many of the new housing estates, especially in Dublin. The main problem in the provision of telephones in newly developed housing estates is that it involves extensive local cabling schemes. Even if the Department had adequate resources it would be difficult to carry out schemes of this type in advance of the completion of the houses. Ducts for cables are provided at the building stage of estates where telephone demand is likely to be high. Until this is done cabling cannot be undertaken and the distribution of wiring to individual houses cannot proceed. We are doing what we can in relation to this to try to speed up the provision of telephones.
Kiosks in urban areas are provided, in general terms, only where they are expected to pay their way and where the existing kiosks are not adequate to meet the demands on them. Kiosks are provided in new housing development areas in accordance with the general urban kiosk policy, but the Department do not insist on the usual conditions being fully satisfied in such housing estates, particularly where, because of cabling and other difficulties, delay in providing private telephones is unavoidable.