Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

When Deputies were linked to principal officers, the link was established at the highest level of principal officer pay. In other words, a principal officer would have to earn all his increments to have the basic salary of a Deputy. On the issue of having increments for Deputies, I examined the papers in my Department and noted a very scanty submission underlying the change in this regard earlier in the decade. It is not constitutionally correct for Deputies to have increments. They are different from all other public servants in this regard. We are here at the pleasure of the people and a Deputy who is elected for a few weeks has the same standing as a Deputy who is here for 20 years. That is the nature of this House and the basic salary arrangement should reflect that point.

I take Deputy Barrett's very fair point that we may have to consider in the medium term the circumstances of Front Bench spokespersons in Opposition parties. We will not be able to examine them during the current crisis. However, it is not justifiable to say that because one is a Member for a number of years, one should earn an increment. Deputies are in a different position from any other member of the public service in this regard. There is no presumption that we should be here for a given number of years; it is entirely a matter for the electorate to determine when given the opportunity to do so.

We are linked to the principal officer grade. If financial adjustments are required to that grade in the course of what we have to do in the next year it will affect Deputies. However, it means Deputies are in the same position as a definite grade in the public service and that is appropriate. I hope there is all-Party agreement to stick to that because it is a good arrangement. If anything, I would like to see it extended to Government Ministers and Ministers of State because that would help to remove the matter from controversy.

Comments were made by various Deputies about our workload. It is a very substantial burden and any principal officer in the public service will accept that any Deputy, of whatever stripe, has to work a lot harder than a principal officer and cannot rely on any hours-of-work legislation in the performance of his or her duties.

The review group will look at comparisons with other countries. Deputy Bruton asked about the party leaders' allowances and payment to Independents and there is an issue in that regard, which I will examine. The Oireachtas Commission has submitted proposals to me and there is a legal basis for the implementation of those in the amendment which, regrettably, we will not discuss now.

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