If they refuse to negotiate a collective agreement, arbitration can be imposed on the employer. It gets away from long and bitter disputes.

On Canadian legislation recognising unions.

In Canada we have no tradition of national agreements. There's industrial turmoil there at the moment.

On differences in industrial relations between Canada and Ireland.

I'm interested in the way unions here have agreed to surrender their autonomy in order to negotiate for gains at national level. There is no way unions in Canada would agree to that. Irish unions have the ear of the Government. It approaches them for an input. They are treated as equal partners who can come up with solutions to problems.

On Partnership 2000.

In Canada unions are treated as a special interest group and the government says special interest groups won't be allowed to dictate to it. So we've had to resort to the politics of the streets.

On the current state of relations between the Canadian government and unions.

Privatisation is the biggest threat we are now facing.

On trade union priorities.

The Progressive Conservative Party takes Newt Gingrich and Margaret Thatcher as role models. The government has caused major industrial unrest and we've closed down nine cities in the last one-and-a-half years.

On the ruling party in Ontario.

We're trying to secure strategic voting for the New Democratic Party and Liberals. Where neither is strong we are advocating an ABC policy: Anybody But Conservatives.

On electoral strategy.

The NDP went after their own base by pulling back the public sector pay bill 5 per cent. There is no case in history where a party has gone after its own base and been re-elected.

On political strategy.