Kevin Humphreys (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Question 299: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his views that it is appropriate that two separate bands exist for Civil Service subsistence rates, often known as overnight allowances, on the basis of salary, and that band A is a higher rate of allowance for those earning higher salaries; if he will provide an explanation for the reason such discrimination on income exists; the amount that would be saved on the basis of 2011 expenditure if the bands were standardised to the lower band B; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9852/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The current civil service Class A and Class B subsistence rates are payment allowances that have been developed through the industrial relations process conducted under the Civil Service Conciliation and Arbitration Scheme. Historically, there were five classes of subsistence rates in the civil service which ranged from class A to class E.

Since 2004 a process has been under way to merge the Class A rate with the lower Class B rate. The mechanism which was being used to achieve this merger was to only apply 40% of any increase to the A rate on each occasion the rates were increased.

As no increase has been conceded in subsistence rates since 2009 the merger process had not been completed yet, although the difference is marginal. The current rates are set out in the table below:

(a) normal rate applies for first fourteen nights

(b) reduced rate for the next twenty-one nights

(c) detention rate for next twenty-eight nights