Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

Despite the fact that the head count reduction is the Minister's main achievement, as he sees it, in public sector reform, it is a disorganised and potentially damaging approach towards reducing the gross pay bill. The Minister is on the record as saying that the full reduction he envisages will reduce the gross pay bill by €2.5 billion from 2008 levels.

See this speech in context