Small businesses want talks role

Members of the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises' Association (ISME) have voted unanimously to take part in discussions to negotiate…

Members of the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises' Association (ISME) have voted unanimously to take part in discussions to negotiate a fourth national agreement.

In a statement last night, ISME said members, in principle, favoured a further agreement subject to a few crucial issues being resolved. While the association awaited a response from the Taoiseach on what level of involvement in the negotiations he proposed for ISME, the association said nothing less than full status as a social partner was acceptable.