Mr. Shay Cody:

The congress has always taken the view that the solution to issues concerning higher pay is to be found through the taxation system. It would be most unusual if we found ourselves in a situation in which higher pay for a county manager, for example, was to be treated in a different way from higher pay for someone in a private sector company. The congress position, in its pre-budget submissions for this year and on previous occasions, is that there should be an additional level of taxation on higher earnings, wherever those earnings come from, regardless of whether they are made up of core pay, allowances, private sector income, public service income or anything else. We believe this is the most equitable way to deal with those matters.