‘We got on very well’: Micheál Martin courts the unions as Opposition sharpens the knives

As the Dáil returned following the Halloween midterm break on Tuesday, the Opposition was primed and ready to put the boot in. When the whistle blew (or Dáil bells rang) at 2pm signalling the beginning of Leaders’ Questions, the public sector pay dispute was the dominant issue on the pitch. “What the public see is a distracted Government with its eye off the ball,” was Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald’s synopsis of the situation, with a threatened second day of strike action set for next Thursday, November 12th, when Ireland is hosting a meeting of European leaders as part of the EU presidency. McDonald was keen to stress the “stark unfairness at play here”, referencing a pay increase of €95,000 signed off on for the new chief executive of DAA by the Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers. READ MORE“It is an increase far above the total salary of a young teacher or nurse, granted with no problem, no drawn-out talks, signed with the stroke of a pen,” she said. “Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael deliver for those at the top, but it is a very different story if you are a nurse, a teacher, an SNA or a firefighter.” The Dublin Central TD went studs in on the Taoiseach in particular and said he had “dithered, delayed and played a game of chicken with public sector workers” and “drove them on to the picket line”. “Now, after 10 days of talks, you have failed to bring forward a credible offer in respect of pay. That is your track record, Taoiseach,” she said. The Social Democrat’s deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan also leant into football analogies for his contribution. He accused Micheál Martin of having his “eye off the ball”. [ Pay offer worth 8% over 30 months falls well short of what public sector unions have soughtOpens in new window ]“Your Government is too busy, ministers briefing against each other, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael trying to outvie each other,” he said. The Dublin Bay North TD also claimed the Fianna Fáil leader had treated public service workers with “barely disguised contempt”, allowing the previous pay deal to expire in June. Labour leader Ivana Bacik was more superstitious in her approach. “Here we go again, Taoiseach, another public sector work stoppage next week,” she began. “Potential strike action on one of the most important days of our EU presidency, just in time for Friday 13th. Unlucky for some, they say, but this is not bad luck. This is bad Government. “Your Government let the last pay deal expire in June, on the eve of the start of the EU presidency. A massive undertaking that you knew would place huge demands on public servants.” [ Ireland unlikely to build 60,000 homes a year without surge in apartments, Cairn warnsOpens in new window ]The Taoiseach was on the defensive throughout the questions and reiterated that the Government wants a public service pay agreement, and that talks should be allowed to continue. He took particular offence to O’Callaghan’s comments and described the Social Democrats deputy leader’s language as “completely over the top, genuinely”. “I attended the annual conference of Fórsa earlier this year,” said Martin. “Does that suggest to you that I treat them with contempt? It was actually a very agreeable conference. We got on very well.” He also pointed to the expansion of the public service over recent years, adding, “Is that treating the public service with contempt?”“I know you have to do what you have to do, and I know the old line which is not that imaginative or not that creative: ‘If a strike happens, it’s your fault.’ Great line, deputy, and that’s what you have to say, and that’s what you’re going to say, and you’ll continue to say,” he told O’Callaghan. [ ‘Deport Jim O’Callaghan’: Proposed citizenship changes condemned at protestOpens in new window ]The Government has to think of “the wider picture” and the offers made “are not small offers”, the Taoiseach added. “We have responsibilities, and that’s it, and we will continue to engage in the talks in good faith with the trade unions. There is no need for a strike next week. With a will, there’s a way to resolving this.”