I move amendment No. 4: In page 27, to delete lines 5 to 12. This amendment is similar to the previous amendment. It concerns limitations on imposing monetary sanctions on relevant directors. It states that the authority may not impose on a director a monetary sanction that would make him or her bankrupt. It provides that only one monetary sanction may be imposed where more than two breaches of the same conduct have occurred. I am not suggesting that all sanctions should be to the point of bankruptcy or that that s…

I am not having much luck with my amendments. I appreciate the points that the Minister of State has made about undermining the framework. That is not the intention of this at all. I think the Minister of State knows that. He referred to making the legislation robust against challenges but no law is immune to challenge. Chances are that there are other sections which we have not even considered that will be challenged at some point. Given the engagement that we had on Committee Stage and the clarification that the …

These amendments were ruled out of order. For me, there is a defect in the legislation regarding the regulation of co-operative societies. The absence of proportional exemptions from the obligation to undertake a statutory audit is the main one. This amendment would have provided for limited exemptions.

I will make these points when I speak to the Bill in general.

That would be useful. I will refer to the issue rather than the amendments specifically. I previously raised concerns, as did other Deputies, and amendments were tabled about the limited exemptions from these obligations that are in line with similar reforms introduced to the same legislation, the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1893, in the North. That legislation was introduced more than 50 years ago. No material injury to the public interest has been identified as a result of the reform. The turnover and …

It is a very simple question.

I thank the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission for this important report. It is an informative piece of work looking at six dimensions of housing adequacy: accessibility, affordability, security of tenure, cultural adequacy, quality and location. It also provides us with baseline figures on the housing situation for a range of socioeconomic groups. This research is important because it essentially backs up with data what we all know. Whether the people on the opposite side of the House choose to acknowledge…

Yesterday, the report by the relevant Oireachtas committee on its pre-legislative scrutiny of the online safety and media regulation Bill was published and has been broadly welcomed. However, a note of caution was sounded by Samaritans Ireland which said that, in its view, the registered providers should have a duty to support staff who undertake moderation of harmful content. The job of content moderator for social media platforms is a relatively new one, which has been discussed with the Tánaiste and the Departme…

It is not, which is very regrettable.

I thank my colleague, an Teachta Cullinane, for bringing forward this very important motion and join others in thanking not just our nurses and midwives but all the workers in our health service and those who have gone above and beyond during the Covid-19 pandemic to keep us safe. They went voluntarily into dangerous situations and to where we needed them to be to keep us safe. We can never praise them highly enough for what they did but, of course, we could pay them. Nothing says "I value you" like payment. I take…

The question is, like all of my questions, very straightforward. I hope that the answer will be forthcoming. It is simply to ask if the Minister of State's attention has been drawn to the fact that the WRC is not informing the relevant agencies and Departments of breaches in the atypical work permit scheme in the fishing sector. I am sure that the importance of this scheme is not lost on the Minister of State, Deputy English. The importance of using every opportunity to ensure that it is applied and applied fairly …

Is it suggested that every time notification does not happen, there has to be a meeting of the Joint Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment? That is not sustainable or fair, particularly to the workers in the fishing industry who are dependent on these arrangements. We are talking about breaches ranging from a failure to grant annual leave or a public holiday entitlement right up to unauthorised deductions from wages. What really worry me are the contraventions of the working time regulations. We have heard …

I absolutely agree; it is past time. The Minister of State said an update is something to consider. I agree on that. Perhaps he will, at the next opportunity, create a timeline for the update because these things tend to drift if a robust timeframe is not put in place. I am thinking about the necessary work done by the WRC, but the fact that there is no follow-up regarding prosecutions means the deterrent does not exist. The majority of employers in this area are fine and want to do the right thing but tackling the…

The question relates to a research paper entitled Inside Out Hospitality: A Study of Working Conditions in the Hospitality Sector in Ireland, which was published during the summer by Dr. Deirdre Curran of NUI Galway. The findings it contains are quite stark. They are very troubling. My questions are simple. Has the Tánaiste read the paper? Was he disturbed by what is in it? Does he plan on taking any action directly on the back of it?

I thank the Tánaiste for the response. The findings are very worrying. The Tánaiste outlined what is in place to protect workers, but the findings not just from Dr. Curran's research but also from Unite the Union's research paper, Hidden Truths - The reality of work in Ireland's hospitality and tourism sector, point to an industry where there are significant issues. As I have to say every time, it is not all employers. These findings relate to the current system the Tánaiste outlined. He has outlined what protectio…

The cigire cannot be there all of the time but, for the avoidance of doubt, the trade union will be there all of the time. This is the best defence a worker has and the best chance of vindicating people's rights at work. The Tánaiste pointed to the issues in the sector. Some of them relate to the fact that there are many migrant workers in the sector. Some of them also relate to the fact that people do not feel supported to make complaints. The solution to this cannot just be more inspections. There was only €1 mil…

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to speak today on the challenges that we still face in this pandemic. The announcements made by the coalition leaders on Monday regarding the new format of the reopening of our society and economy have some welcome elements but have also caused additional difficulties, especially for businesses and workers. I will focus on a small number of areas. First, the guidance given with regard to the return to workplaces constitutes what can only be described as mixed messagin…

As of yesterday, more than half of the Sinn Féin representatives in the Assembly in Stormont are women and the lights are still on and the world has not stopped turning. Indeed, the work will continue. This can and will happen in this and other Parliaments and it will be a good thing, a positive thing and something that we should celebrate. We are not nearly there yet. There is a huge amount of work yet to be done. When reading the recommendations of the citizens' assembly, I was struck by how much work remains to …

On 21 September, the Tánaiste, Deputy Leo Varadkar, said that pay increases are happening across the economy. I would heavily and heartily dispute that but I can tell the Taoiseach it is most definitely not happening in the security industry. I want to ask for an update on the status of the State’s defence of the court challenge taken against the employment regulation order, ERO, for workers in the security sector. This challenge seeks to put back their pay increases which, as the Taoiseach will know, are very mode…

I thank the Acting Chair for the opportunity to speak on this important motion. The trade agreement between EU member states and the Republic of Singapore has been in place for some time now. I know from observation of the debate on this agreement in the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence last week that the Minister of State believes it to be working very well. As with all trade agreements, I hope it will be continuously monitored to ensure that it delivers for this State and that it upholds fair trade…