Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)

The Department of Education and Skills employs one third of all public sector employees. Numbers must be reduced to meet the macro targets set by the troika. Of course, it has told us to find the detail. However, the employment control framework is contained in the memorandum of understanding signed up to by the previous Government. We are obliged to follow this until we come out of the programme which still has two years to run. Having met the troika and read the memorandum of understanding, Deputy Boyd Barrett knows what the options are. If he can find other ways of reducing public sector numbers, I would be more than happy to discuss them with him.

See this speech in context