Ms Oonagh Buckley:

I might add to Mr. Barry O'Brien's contribution. That is a centrally negotiated allowance which is being examined by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. We will be considering it in the context of priority industrial relations negotiations. As members may be aware, we are not in a position to discuss those in detail but we have indicated that we would like to have it eliminated for new beneficiaries and we are prepared to discuss that with the staff side for serving staff.