Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)

My point regarding the payment of long service increments to public servants who are paid more than Deputies also applies to the dual payment of public sector pensions. Deputies and Senators are not the only people on the Government payroll who also receive a pension. Many people in well paid positions at the head of State agencies and boards have retired from the Army, the Garda and other areas and are in receipt of both a substantial public service pension and a substantial public service salary. If Deputies in the next Dáil are no longer able to benefit from that arrangement, should the same arrangement not apply across the board? I accept the need for this measure. Politicians must show example and impose greater cuts on ourselves than on others. However, the Oireachtas costs are 0.2% of the entire budget and these changes mean nothing if they are not followed through across the public service. The measures being introduced by the Minister should be imposed across the board on those who earn salaries equivalent to that of a Senator or higher. That seems to me to be fair and I would be interested to hear the Minister's comments in this regard.

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