Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 28:

In page 6, line 35, after "may," to insert "by way of regulation by the Minister".

This is the nasty section of the legislation where the Minister is introducing a power to himself or to Ministers to make amendments less favourable in terms of remuneration of persons in respect of employment in the public service and also to provide for changes to their working time, whether by reference to the day or week. This should not be done but if it is to be done at all, in the interests of transparency I put down an amendment that it should be done by way of regulation or by statutory instrument.

If a Minister is making a concession in the education sector or the justice sector, it should be done by way statutory instrument rather than merely lodging it in the Labour Court. The Minister knows as well as I do that what is discussed in the Labour Court and industrial relations matters are exempt from freedom of information and there is no mechanism for the public to see what is going on. There can be a secret deal, which is exempt from freedom of information, in the Labour Court that led to the agreement being reached. Then there could be inconsistent agreements being reached by different Ministers or different categories of public sector employment. Only today, the Minister published legislation about mobility of staff in the public service. It is not in anybody's interest that there would be deals done through this legislation that are not publicly available and the Ministers should be accountable to the House on any such deal.

I will cut to the chase. If the Minister or any of his colleagues is doing such deals or they are being done in any of the sectors, health, education, justice or the local authorities, the relevant Minister should lodge the details by way of statutory instrument. It would allow at least for a mechanism by which they may be discussed in the Chambers if the Members choose to do so.

Without that facility different arrangements may be entered into across the eight different sectors and neither the public nor the Parliament will have any knowledge of those arrangements. I ask that they be done by way of regulation rather than agreement solely in the Labour Court or Labour Relations Commission.

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