Mick Barry
Question:5. Deputy Mick Barry asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on economy, trade and jobs last met; and when the next meeting is scheduled for. [33546/16]
View answerWednesday, 9 November 2016
Questions (5)
Oral answers (13 contributions)
The Cabinet committee on the economy, trade and jobs last met on Monday, 7 November 2016. It is intended to hold the next meeting in the near future.
Could we stick to the subject matter, please?
I always endeavour to.
The Deputy is quite versatile, I have noticed.
Versatile, yes.
I note the comments of the Taoiseach on the timing of meetings of the committee. However, important events have taken place since the last meeting. I refer in particular to the result of the dispute between An Garda Síochána and the Government on pay. I probably should not use the word "result" because the feedback I am getting is that the Garda ballot was far from a done deal. There is a lot of discontent and opposition to the deal.
As it stands, the State is lined up to pay somewhere between €40 million and €50 million extra to gardaí on the basis of the recommended deal. Of course, it will not stop with the gardaí. The nurses are pursuing a claim. Low-paid civil servants, members of the CPSU, SIPTU, IMPACT and other public service unions will be pursuing claims now.
I note the Government propaganda machine cranked into action over recent days with an attempt at what I can only describe as a divide-and-conquer policy. The basic message that is being sent out by the Government propaganda machine is that if there is higher pay for gardaí, nurses and low-paid civil servants over and above that set out in the Lansdowne Road agreement, there will be less money for the health and education services and people on social welfare. That is a crude divide-and-conquer strategy. It is a crude attempt to set parents against teachers, people who use the health service against nurses, and people on social welfare against public servants. It is a disgraceful policy.
The Taoiseach is well aware that there is an alternative strategy that would mean higher and more decent pay and an end to two-tier pay among public servants, on the one hand, and the protection and improvement of public services, on the other. That can be done by bringing in extra finance. There are plenty of opportunities to bring in extra finance. I will not detail 20 of them as we have had the budget debate but I will pick one as a simple example. It is the idea of a millionaire's tax. If a modest 2% tax on the income and wealth of millionaires in this country were introduced, what would it produce? It would produce a fund of €2.9 million per annum.
That is not much.
What could one do with €2.9 million? One would be able to end the two-tier pay system for young workers in the public sector and restore all the wages and benefits taken from public sector workers in the course of the austerity crisis years.
There is a clear alternative if it is prepared to tax the rich. Of course, the Fine Gael Party is a party of the rich and will not entertain the idea of taxing them, as shown by the nudges, winks, nods, grins and laughter between the Minister, Deputy Simon Coveney, and the Taoiseach in the course of my contribution. They believe my suggestion is amusing, but many people will say it is basic common sense, would be good for ordinary people and should be done. Obviously, vested interests are impacting on Fine Gael's party policy.
What now for the trade union movement, including the ICTU, in addressing this issue? The movement should, first and foremost, base itself on a simple policy, that being, pursuing what is necessary for its members, those whom it represents. Two things are necessary, the first being full restoration of all of the money taken from the back pockets of public sector workers during the austerity crisis years. This should not be done in 2018, 2019 or 2020; effectively, it should be done now. Second, the cost of living has increased for these workers in recent years. I could point to motor insurance premiums and many other factors, but what about mortgage and rent payments, the second of which affects young public servants, in particular? Not only should there be full pay restoration, but claims should be submitted to address cost of living increases. If they can be negotiated with the Government, grand, but the Taoiseach, the Minister and those on the Government benches are taking a hard line in considering this type of idea. If these issues cannot be negotiated, claims should be submitted. If strikes and battles are necessary to win the justified increases, it is right to do so and we will be prepared to stand alongside public servants every inch of the way as they battle for pay justice.
I will allow brief supplementary questions from Deputies Micheál Martin and Gerry Adams.
In the context of the next meeting of the Cabinet committee on the economy and trade, it is important that we now plan for a situation where there will be no significant moves in the near future to remove trade barriers facing Irish companies. Something President-elect Trump has in common with Deputies Mick Barry, Richard Boyd Barrett and Paul Murphy is his opposition to free trade agreements. They are on the same page in not facilitating free trade, something on which the President-elect was strong. This is concerning in the context of the broader international environment. Are we moving into an era of protectionism and does the Cabinet committee on the economy and trade need to assess the international environment? I hope the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, CETA, will get through, but the position is now much different. Some Deputies oppose all elements of all trade agreements. Regardless of whether anyone likes it, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, TTIP, is now gone. Both candidates in the presidential election were against it. No comment was made on the similarity between President-elect Trump's policies and those of the far left in this House. In the case of Brexit, those who wanted to leave the European Union and the anti-Europeanism had much in common with the attitude to the Union of Deputies Paul Murphy, Richard Boyd Barrett and Mick Barry, which is interesting. The economy is facing multiple threats. There is a great deal of uncertainty as a result of the presidential election in America and there was a great deal of concern beforehand. These concerns remain justified and cannot be swept under the carpet. There is considerable uncertainty about what the new President's policies will be.
As for the idea that in a normal democratic environment one would not congratulate the winner, there was a democratic contest and the transition of power is important in democracies, including parliamentary democracies. We should always acknowledge this and not go against it. The Presidents of the European Commission and the European Council have sought an early meeting with President-elect Trump. The Taoiseach should support that request. A meeting is required because the relationship between the United States and the European Union is of central importance to our economic development and the work of the Cabinet committee on the economy and trade. Does the Taoiseach accept that there is a need to stand back and reflect on where the world is going in terms of trade policy and that the Cabinet committee should carry out some work in this regard?
It is not our business to go against the result of any democratic vote taken in anyone else's country. For a long time, that was the great irritant in our affairs, in that others decided what we should do. One does not have to agree with the outcome or the policies of those who are elected. In Ireland and the United States Sinn Féin has argued with US Presidents, including personally, on foreign policy, particularly on Palestine, Cuba, Afghanistan and Iraq, and we will continue to do so.
What steps will the Government take to support the retail sector in the light of the currency fluctuations arising from the Brexit decision in England and Wales? Some €52 million has been set aside in capital funding in 2017 to support the enterprise sector and assist Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland in responding to Brexit. Given all of the uncertainties, difficulties and pressures, InterTradeIreland's quarterly business monitor reveals that 97% of our businesses are not ready for Brexit. Is the Government considering providing additional supports for exporters to meet the challenge of Brexit? Will the Taoiseach commit, having failed to do so as clearly as he should have, to building support for designated special status for the North within the European Union in keeping with the result of the vote of the people there and tailor Government policy to meet that objective?
Deputy Mick Barry began by asking his question in respect of the Cabinet committee on the economy, trade and jobs and then proceeded to give an almost ten-minute speech on industrial relations and so on. These are matters that are of great importance and I pay tribute to those in the trade union movement who have shown great steadiness, coherence and understanding of the difficulties we have had in this country economically for a number of years.
Hear, hear.
Owing to their constructive and positive approach, over 280,000 people have been able to receive benefits under the Lansdowne Road agreement. Obviously, these are matters that are continuously kept under discussion. It does Deputy Mick Barry no justice to forget the contribution they have made in the greater interests of our economic development.
I have to agree with Deputy Micheál Martin that TTIP is now dead. Clearly, comments made during the course of the primary and presidential elections on trade agreements are, I think, already being revised to the extent of perhaps adjusting some of the agreements instead of doing them down altogether. This is an issue to which, obviously, we will return.
I also agree that, from a European and an Irish perspective, we need to look five, ten or 20 years ahead. That is why I always say the European Union should not be afraid of the future. It is a bloc of 28, soon to be 27, member states and almost 500 million people. It is one of the best-developed regions on the planet, capable of setting the standards and conditions that should apply to world trade for the next 50 years. Where we need to move is to a future of prosperity, peace and opportunity. These are things we could usefully discuss here in the context of the broader European part we have to play.
Deputy Gerry Adams referred to the retail sector. This is one of the themes and sectoral areas that will be discussed in considerable detail, North and South, in the next period arising from the all-island forum established in the consideration of Brexit.
I have discussed previously with the Deputy his views on seeking a special arrangement, status or position. When we last discussed this matter, two issues arose, one of which was seeking an alternative, while the other was seeking special status. To a degree, we have been recognised as being very different in the context of the Border, the peace process, INTERREG funds, PEACE funds and all of the supported activity on a cross-Border basis covering infrastructure, medical services, education and so on. In the recent budget we were obviously cognisant of Brexit and the Minister for Finance made a number of arrangements in that context, one of which involved the retention of the 9% VAT rate for the hospitality sector. It has had an impact in stabilising and increasing opportunities in the sector which is very important in the context of future developments. We will have an opportunity to discuss these matters further in the House at a future date.