Mr. Tim Duggan:

There has been extensive consultation with both employer and employee representatives of all kinds since we started this project for real back in 2017. When we produced what we call the "strawman proposal", we engaged in a major public consultation exercise at that time. We toured the country and visited many centres. We held open public forum meetings. We did online surveys, focus groups and all that kind of stuff. Emerging from that was this ten-year lead-in time, going from a low contribution level up to the maximum contribution level. That idea emerged from that consultation exercise because both employee representatives and employer representatives felt that going much faster than that would be too penal and result in too great an income shock and cost shock for employers.

Extensive consultation has continued with employer and employee representatives through the Labour Employer Economic Forum, the LEEF structure, that the Government operates but also bilaterally. We have had many meetings IBEC. We have had meetings with ISME, small firms and numerous other employer representative bodies. We have run numerous webinars with all of them over the past two years to try to ensure that they are up to speed as possible with their obligations under this scheme.

The Deputy is right. Most employers - in fact, practically all of them - are fully supportive of the scheme. Even now, recognising that it is a cost on their business, at least initially, they are still supportive of it because they see the value and benefit of it.

In terms of additional employment in Letterkenny, there are two parts to it. There is the additional employment that will be generated in TCS as a result of being the managed service provider of administration services for the scheme. As I noted in my opening statement, TCS estimates that will be in excess of 100 additional posts. When established, NAERSA will begin with in the region of 35 posts. That may increase to north of 40 eventually. There are different grade structures in that. It will be headed up by a chief executive officer at the deputy Secretary General level. He or she will have three senior managers reporting at principal officer and director level. The other 30 staff will be spread over assistant principal, higher executive officer, executive officer and clerical officer levels. The competition for the CEO is concluding this week. For the three senior managers, the competition will be concluding during August. We are running competitions and expressions of interest for all of the other positions over the course of August, September and October.