Mr. Sebastian Barnes:

This is an area where, again, a difficult balance must be struck in the current circumstances. Public sector pay rates were set with a view that inflation was going to be much lower than it turned out to be. It would be natural that there would be some reflection of this. It is, however, also an area in respect of which the Government will have to strike a balance. Some people in the public sector are highly paid, while others are on much lower incomes. This is also an area where some discussion with the private sector would be helpful, as would thinking about how this matter intersects with welfare rates and other things. If we are trying to decide how we are going to manage this as a country, then we will need to think about how all these pieces will fit together.