Chambers challenge IBEC’s sincerity on local government charges

The Chambers of Commerce of Ireland (CCI) has challenged the sincerity of IBEC’s current campaign on local government charges, pointing out that their rhetoric is not matched by their actions to date in the pay negotiations.

Speaking this morning, CCI Chief Executive John Dunne said: “Having heard IBEC’s comments on rising commercial rates this morning, I firstly welcome the organisation’s belated acknowledgement of local authority funding as an important business issue.

“However, I had to raise an eyebrow when Brendan Butler claimed that business does not know how the money reaped commercial rates is being spent.”

“In fact,” Mr Dunne said, “business has a very clear understanding of where the money is going and that is to pay for the cost of local authority pay rises under Sustaining Progress, a deal to which IBEC signed up despite the fact that the Government refused to cover the consequent cost increases which amounted to hundreds of millions of euro in local authority wage bills.”

“According to reports over the weekend, the unions have been given assurances by the Government on tax reductions in the forthcoming budget to facilitate union ratification of the second part of the Sustaining Progress pay deal.

“If IBEC is serious about its latest campaign, they should refuse to ratify the deal on behalf of employers until there is a similar public undertaking given in regard to the funding of local government wage costs by the exchequer,” he said.

“Otherwise, the business community will be left with no option but to dismiss IBEC’s statements this morning as nothing more than opportunistic sound-bites."