Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 12 December 2013
128. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he will bring forward legislation to ensure that essential power services can always be protected from the threat of industrial action; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53610/13]
View answerThe Irish industrial relations legislative and institutional industrial relations system is framed in the particular context of, on the one hand, maintaining industrial peace and providing the State machinery to help that happen while, on the other, recognising our citizen’s rights to freedom of association, trade union membership and, with the singular exceptions of those charged with preserving our security, the freedom to take industrial action. Where disputes do arise in essential services which have the potential to have a major impact on the public and the economy due to the disruption of essential services, there are expert and experienced industrial relations mechanisms of the State available to assist in the resolution of the issues. The intervention and assistance provided by the Labour Relations Commission in the ESB dispute being the most recent example.
A reliance on criminal sanctions in the sphere of industrial relations, particularly in the context of any lawful industrial action, is considered inappropriate in the context of Ireland's voluntarist industrial relations system.
Eirgrid as Transmission System Operator has statutory responsibility for managing the electricity transmission system in Ireland, and working closely with ESB Networks, manages disruptions to electricity supply. The companies have detailed operational and communications plans in place to deal with a variety of scenarios with a view to minimising disruptions and mitigating the impact of any disruption. Every effort is made to keep as many customers supplied as possible, particularly vital services and infrastructure.
In the event of significant disruptions to electricity supply, my Department would take the lead in terms of arranging for Government Departments and Agencies to be briefed by Eirgrid and ESB Networks, as the responsible agencies for managing a disruption, on the likely impacts of power disruption. This would facilitate each Department and Agency identifying the impact on their area of sectoral responsibility and responding as appropriate to manage their own particular situations through appropriate contingency plans.
