Ms Sheila Nunan:

A large proportion of the so-called allowances are on the teachers’ pay bill. Part of the reason it did not come up was that it was understood by teachers to be part of their pay. "Allowance" has become a pejorative word in the context of pay. There was a time when this would not have mattered. Clearly, the agenda has now shifted considerably, given the comments made about allowances.

In response to Deputy Mary Lou McDonald’s comments, I am taken aback, as a general secretary representing teachers who have been badly affected, at any suggestion that we would not contest the cuts in the strongest possible terms. I noticed that when the Department’s Secretary General was before the committee last week, he was also sensitive to the negotiation process in this regard. The guns are not blazing at the committee but in the appropriate remuneration forum.

To my knowledge, there has not been an exercise to consolidate allowances. For example, it is not as quite as straightforward for a principal teacher because it can depend on the number of years of service and so forth. In the future, work could be done to resolve aspects of this.