Robert Troy
Ceist:21. Deputy Robert Troy asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the level of engagement he has had with the management of Bus Éireann regarding its restructuring plan. [14447/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraWednesday, 22 March 2017
Ceisteanna (21)
Freagraí ó Béal (12 píosaí cainte)
The financial challenges facing Bus Éireann have been known to the Minister and his predecessor for in excess of 16 months, going back to January 2016. We are now told that we face insolvency in Bus Éireann within a matter of weeks. What level of engagement has the Minister had with the board and management of Bus Éireann in the past number of weeks on the proposed restructuring plan?
I share the Deputy's concern about this particular problem, which is still going on as we speak and remains unresolved. As I have previously indicated to the Deputy, during the course of 2016 Bus Éireann management worked on developing a business plan to address the loss making situation in its commercial Expressway business. Several drafts of Bus Éireann's proposals were presented to my Department and NewERA, my Department's financial advisers, and discussed. These discussions highlighted some shortcomings that existed in the draft proposals as presented. Previously, I informed the Deputy that these shortcomings included issues such as the commercial rationale, financing, implementation, sensitivity, risk analysis and the need to consider both state aid and competition law interactions. In September 2016, the board of the company commissioned Grant Thornton to review the proposals as previously developed by the company. Unsurprisingly, that review highlighted the same shortcomings identified in my own Department's analysis. No doubt the Deputy's own review of the Grant Thornton report has led him to a similar conclusion.
Bus Éireann is continuing work to develop a new plan to address the company's loss making situation and restore it to a sustainable future. As clearly stated in the code of practice for the governance of State bodies, the preparation of strategic plans and-or business plans are the responsibility of the board of a State-owned company. In line with normal good corporate governance, draft strategic and business plans are discussed with Departments and observations are provided. As I have just mentioned, this is exactly the type of interaction which has taken place between my Department and Bus Éireann. My Department has kept me fully informed at all times as this work has developed. I have met with the chairman of the company on a number of occasions throughout 2016 and 2017 and have been updated personally on relevant developments.
Has the Minister seen the plan the board is discussing today and which it intends to implement unilaterally from next week? Previously, the Minister said he was a party and had a number of drafts referred to him, but has he seen the proposed plan the board wishes to implement in the next number of days? Has he been consulted on the implementation of that plan without the agreement of the unions? Does he agree with the implementation of that plan without having achieved consultation with the unions?
Let me answer that question as fully as I possibly can for the Deputy with regard to implementation of the plan without the agreement of the unions. It is not for me to intervene between management and unions in this particular dispute, and I certainly would not be intervening to approve or disapprove of the plan proceeding. I have made it absolutely clear that my intention during the dispute is to keep as far away from it as possible and to leave it to the two parties involved. I would not be doing anything which would stand in the way of that plan or intervening in respect of that plan. I urge the management and unions to get down to talks as fast as possible at the Workplace Relations Commission or in the Labour Court and to use the institutions of the State to resolve this dispute. It is not up to me to take sides, it is up to them to resolve the industrial relations problems.
Why are the plans referred to the Minister and the Department if he does not need to approve them? Does he approve of the restructuring plans being put forward, "Yes" or "No"? What is the Minister's opinion on the board and management of Bus Éireann seeking legal advice on reckless trading? If the plan is not implemented, I am told that the board and directors could be held up for reckless trading. Surely, as the main shareholder in a semi-State body, the Minister has responsibility if he feels a company is trading recklessly. He has abdicated his responsibilities in respect of this matter. Total inaction in recent months on the part of the Minister and the Department - this stretches back years if the Minister's predecessor's time in office is included - has led us to a situation where we are at the edge of the cliff. The unions and the workers were not alone in contributing to the huge deficit in Bus Éireann. As the Minister will acknowledge, the company requires structural reform and he, the NTA and the various stakeholders have a role to play in that regard.
I agree with much of what Deputy Troy said at the end. If structural reform is necessary, certainly the NTA, I, as Minister, the workforce, the management and others will have a serious role to play. I agree with that absolutely.
When?
It will be the shareholders' duty to get involved in structural reform, if that is necessary, but not to get involved in an industrial relations dispute. I have made it quite clear to Deputy Troy and others in the House many times that once the dispute-----
Will the Minister answer the question on reckless trading?
If I could, without interruption, Deputy Troy, please.
The Minister can talk down the clock without answering the question.
Once the dispute is ended, I will be very happy to engage in talks with any of the stakeholders involved to discuss the very issues the Deputy wants me to discuss, but not before that and not under the threat of industrial action.
On the reckless trading issue, I am absolutely assured, not just by its public statements but by my conversations with it, that the company is very conscious of its duties as regards reckless trading and it has repeated that publicly many times in recent weeks also.