Silent TUI Greets Coughlan Address

The Tanaiste has been greeted by an eerie silence at the Teachers' Union of Ireland conference today during her address on the new public sector pay deal.

Minister for Education Mary Coughlan told delegates in Ennis today that without economic recovery the Government would be unable to finance public services.

Ms Coughlan said the Government had to take some "difficult and unpopular decisions" in order to deal with the fall in tax revenue and stabilise the public finances.

"While it galls me, just as it does you, to be providing such significant amounts of capital to banks that made irresponsible lending decisions; it is the case that without a stable domestic banking sector providing credit, our economy would not have the capacity to recover," the Taniaste said.

She added: "Without a recovery and the return of Ireland to a path of sustainable economic growth, we would be without the means to finance public services and invest in the maintenance and development of frontline provision, such as education, health and welfare."

The TUI is currently amid discussions over whether to accept the new public sector pay deal hammered out in the Labour Court last week. The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) has already rejected the deal during their annual convention in Galway this morning.

Delegates in Galway unanimously voted in favour of a motion calling on the union’s central executive committee to recommend the rejection of the agreement to its members.

The motion was proposed by the union standing committee, which expressed its “total and vehement opposition” to the agreement.

General Secretary of the Association of Secondary Teachers of Ireland John White said it was a "great time of difficulty" for their members and a time when they will be truly tested.

He said teachers and other public servants have had their take-home pay cut by up to 19%, while their terms and conditions of employment are under attack.

Mr White called on Tánaiste and Minister of Education Mary Coughlan to lift the moratorium on teacher recruitment before the education of this generation of pupils was "irretrievably damaged".

However, this morning, Ms Coughlan showed some maneuvering as the Government tries to entice unions to accept the agreement.

Speaking about the ongoing moratorium, the Tanaiste said: "I would therefore like to give some comfort this afternoon to those members in schools where there is an acute problem that I am going to look at how some limited alleviation of the position [on the moratorium] might be applied for the next school year."

(DW/GK)