Dr. Donal de Buitléir:

I thank the Chairman and members of the committee for the invitation to appear here today. I am honoured to have been asked by the Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Nash, to chair the Low Pay Commission.

By way of introduction, I grew up in Clonmel, where both my parents worked in the local government service. I attended the local Christian Brothers school before going to UCD, where I graduated in economics. I joined the Office of the Revenue Commissioners and later worked in the department of economic planning and development. During that time, I did postgraduate work in UCD and was awarded a PhD for a study of the equity of the Irish personal tax system. I was appointed secretary of the Commission on Taxation in 1980 and served in that capacity until 1985, when I returned to the Revenue Commissioners and took on responsibility for the management of VAT and corporation tax. I was awarded an Eisenhower Fellowship in 1987 and spent over three months in the United States studying the US system of self-assessment.

I joined AIB Group in 1989, where I worked as head of group taxation, and later in the office of the group chief executive. During my time in AIB I was given the opportunity, which I greatly valued, of serving on a number of public service bodies. I chaired what is now the Citizens' Information Board, the review group on third level places, the review group on third level student support, the business regulation forum and the civil service performance verification group. I was also a member of the Nevin committee on integration of tax and welfare, the Barrington committee on local government reform, and the Brennan commission on financial management in the health service. I chaired the Lord Mayor's commission on finance of Dublin City Council in 2002 and was appointed to the board of the Health Service Executive in 2005, on which I served until 2009. I retired from AIB in 2009, when I was invited by Atlantic Philanthropies to establish publicpolicy.ie, which aims to produce evidence to contribute to public policy issues.

I have also been involved in a number of voluntary organisations. I spent 16 years on the board of the Tabor Society, founded by Fr. Peter McVerry to provide a home for young boys in Dublin’s inner city. I served on the board of trustees of Eisenhower Fellowships in Philadelphia, which was chaired by Dr. Henry Kissinger and later by General Colin Powell. I was President of the Statistical and Social Inquiry Society of Ireland and also chaired the Foundation for Fiscal Studies and the National Advocacy Service for People with Disabilities. I am currently a member of the board of management of the local primary school which my daughters attend.

The Low Pay Commission is required to recommend a national minimum wage by 15 July next. In making that recommendation, we will be examining a range of factors. I would welcome the views of members on the matter, and I am happy, if appropriate, to appear again before the committee to discuss the commission's report when finalised.