Martin Mansergh (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)

Therefore, there were significant real increases at the bottom of the scale and something of a pay bonanza in the upper reaches, and the scale of adjustments in this Bill at the higher end reflect that. Benchmarking and higher remuneration were part of the process.

The perception ten years ago was that the private sector was powering away but those who worked in the public sector, although their outputs were less tangible, believed they were doing work just as valuable and productive. However, the private sector is more volatile. There have been job losses and income cuts. There is no guaranteed income beyond the minimum wage and if one is self-employed or a small farmer there is no guarantee of even that. Private pension provision, which was once quite generous for most people outside the very wealthy and fiscal stratosphere, is now a poor cousin of public service provision.

When the country was, to use the mantra, awash with money, we over-committed ourselves-----

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