Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I support the thrust of the amendments. It is important to say that in proposing such amendments, or supporting them in my case, although they are in line with my party's broad policy on these matters, there is no vendetta against politicians, Ministers or those earning over €100,000. It is about saying a person who earned €30,000 in 2009 will at the end of this deal still earn less than €30,000. At the end of it he or she will earn €29,500. Similarly, on restoration, a person earning €40,000 will receive €2,000 out of the more than €4,000 that was taken from his or her annual income. A person earning €50,000 will see a restoration of €2,000 of the total of €5,825 taken from him or her. These figures have been provided by the IMPACT trade union. The people on these incomes are the very ones who cannot afford to pay their rent or bills or who are suffering mortgage distress. They are the victims of the housing crisis and their need is greater. Faced with the options available, should it not be a priority for the Government to give back as much as possible to the people in question who lhave difficulty in paying their rent and bills. I do not exaggerate when I say I am dealing with low paid public servants who have been made homeless. That is what is happening. It is against that background that I say the following without hostility or vitriol towards a politician earning €89,000, or a Minister who has voluntarily but not statutorily been excluded. The same applies to a consultant earning over €100,000 a year.

Given the choice of giving pay restoration to those who, let us be honest can manage reasonably comfortably, as against people who cannot pay the bills or the rent, I know where our priorities should be. I am convinced our priority has to be to put people back in a position where they can simply make ends meet. That should also be the Minister's priority.

I accept there is a difficulty with consultants but when one listens to what they are saying, the majority say the problem is the disaster in the health service. It is stress that they cannot bear. They do not know what to do, or which way to turn because things are such a mess.