After three months of negotiations, the new partnership agreement has been published, reports Chris Dooley
Temporary price controls should be considered by the Government to curb inflation, according to the new national partnership agreement, Sustaining Progress, which was published last night.
The controls are among a series of anti-inflation measures agreed by employers and unions, although not necessarily backed by the Government, contained in the proposed agreement.
After more than three months of negotiations, the 123-page document has been completed and can be viewed on the Government website. It is hoped to have printed copies available on Monday.
While most elements of the three-year deal, including pay rises covering the first 18 months, have been made public, the document completed yesterday contains new proposals on inflation.
Most of these are contained in an annex comprising proposals agreed by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions and the employers' body, IBEC.
They include a call for the Competition Authority and the Director of Consumer Affairs to be given additional priorities and tasks, including "more aggressive implementation of competition policy".
Investigations are proposed in sectors where price increases do not appear justified by market conditions.
"Where such investigations reveal evidence of excessive price levels, the Government will be asked to give detailed consideration to introducing measures, including temporary price controls, where appropriate, pending realisation of more acceptable markets and real competition."
By including the proposals as an annex attributed to IBEC and ICTU, the Government has stopped short of endorsing them.
It has agreed, however, as reported in The Irish Times on Thursday, to the setting up of a high-level group to draw up an action plan on inflation and monitor its progress.
Employers, unions and community and voluntary groups will decide in the coming weeks whether to sign up to the agreement, with final decisions to be made late next month.
Most debate on the union side will focus on the 7 per cent pay increases, to be phased in over 18 months, as well as new arrangements for handling disputes.
Some unions are extremely unhappy with measures requiring them to refer disputes over certain issues to binding arbitration.
Increased statutory redundancy payments, an affordable housing initiative, improvements in parental leave and maternity rights and the timetable and conditions for payment of benchmarking increases are also included in the package.
On the broader social agenda, 10 "special initiatives" are proposed in areas including the cost of insurance, migration, long-term unemployment, waste management, child poverty and drug abuse. Community and voluntary groups are divided on the merits of these. Some say they are too vague and lack specific resources, but others say new mechanisms for implementing them will facilitate real progress.
Conspicuous by its absence from the document is a section on agriculture, following the failure of the Government and farm groups to reach agreement.
The Irish Farmers' Association reacted angrily yesterday to a claim by the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Walsh, that the proposals on offer were worth €300 million to farming interests.
Mr John Dillon, the IFA president, said this was without foundation. "The Government's attitude is clearly to push farmers out of partnership, cut farm spending and direct resources to other sectors, particularly the soaring public sector pay bill."
The document can be viewed on the website www.taoiseach.gov.ie