‘Nuclear winter’ if Croke Park deal axed

One of the ministers charged with overseeing the reform of the public service has warned of a “nuclear winter” of industrial action if the Croke Park deal is abandoned.

The 2010 agreement has been subjected to increased criticism recently, but Brian Hayes, minister of state at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, sung its praises in a speech to the Seanad. He also criticised detractors of the agreement for their lack of a clear alternative. “Those calling for a re-negotiation are very vague about what this means,” said Mr Hayes.

“They need to be explicit about the alternative strategy they put forward and be upfront about what that would mean for our teachers, gardaí, nurses and other ordinary public servants in terms of further cuts in pay and compulsory rather than voluntary redundancies.