Unpaid leave - This is not the time to be fudging it

Calling off the one-day strike scheduled for today was a welcome development, but there must be no more procrastination in tackling the vital issues involved. Nobody wants to see people made unemployed, but we have to be realistic. The public sector has to be the right size for us as a nation.

Throughout yesterday there seemed to be mixed signals coming from both sides. There were suggestions of some kind of breakthrough with the Government.

Union spokespeople were saying that implementing around 12 days of unpaid leave would secure much of the necessary €1.3 billion in savings on the public expenditure bill, without disrupting the public service. Moreover there were suggestions that this leave could somehow be taken over a period of up to four years.