Shane Ross dubbed 'the invisible man' of Irish politics over transport disputes
The Transport Minister Shane Ross has been dubbed 'the invisible man' in the Dáil.
Minister Ross is continuing to insist he will not get involved in the Bus Éireann dispute with an all-out strike set to begin on Monday.
He told an Oireachtas committee yesterday that it is up to management and unions to resolve this and he refused to answer questions from reporters at an event yesterday evening.
Meanwhile the National Bus and Rail Union is advising workers to prepare for "the mother of all public transport disputes".
In a statement this afternoon the union says it is nigh on impossible to find a resolution between now and Sunday night given the complexities of the dispute.
Sinn Féin transport spokesperson Imelda Munster raised the Bus Éireann crisis in the Dáil this afternoon.
"The Government is happy to sit on the sidelines and let the chaos unfold," she said.
"The Taoiseach said this week that both he and the cabinet fully support the Minister for Transport.
"The same minister who acts as if his job description was written by H G Wells. Shane Ross the invisible man of Irish politics."
Ms Munster also said that Minister Ross refuses to engage with stake-holders.
"I am blue in the face of listening to both Minister Ross and government representatives saying that this is an industrial dispute.
"For the past five months you have been asked repeatedly to engage with all the stake-holders - the NTA, Department of Transport, Bus Éireann management and all the unions - and you've repeatedly refused."
