Croke Park report ‘a work of fiction’

The need for an independent foreign body to oversee a renegotiation of the Croke Park agreement and the possibility of Ireland’s 12.5% corporation tax rate being increased were among the topics debated at ISME’s annual conference yesterday.

Addressing delegates at Dublin’s RDS, the chairman of the small firms lobby group, John Ryan, branded the recent second progress report on the Croke Park deal as “a work of fiction”, put together by “civil servants from Minister [Brendan] Howlin’s department and four trade union bosses”.

Calling for an immediate cessation of all pay rises in the public sector and an independent, overseas body to look after the Croke Park deal, Mr Ryan said: “We cannot accept this charade anymore, with vested interest insiders judging themselves.

“The pain on the road to economic recovery must be shared equally. Instead, we create hardship for those in need.”

Meanwhile, Anthony Foley, senior lecturer at DCU Business School, suggested it would not be surprising if the question of a rise in Ireland’s 12.5% corporation tax reared its head again as part of any deal over bank debt.