Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The cost of the demands the nursing unions are articulating would be €300 million. If I were to make any change in a pay rate, it would have to be done for everybody. We made an agreement with many unions and said there was only a certain amount available for public pay in any given year. If the integrity of that commitment was to be undermined, the need would crystallise immediately for money to be made available to everybody. The challenges we would then face with unplanned expenditure would be immense by comparison with some of the issues we are debating.