Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The hypocrisy of Fianna Fáil knows no bounds. Twice when Fianna Fáil was in government it unilaterally cut the pay of people who work in our public services without a by your leave or agreement from anybody. This Government, by contrast, engaged in negotiations with the trade unions representing staff who work in our public services, including those who work in our health services, and agreed with the trade unions a formula for the management of public service pay over the coming years. All those trade unions in the public services, including those in the health services and the nursing unions, have agreed to that arrangement and to the way pay is to be managed in the public service.

We have a pay regime in our health services which is agreed with the trade unions, covered by the Haddington Road agreement. That covers all aspects of the management of pay within the public services. This year we have recruited an additional 260 people for primary care teams, including 52 speech and language therapists, 72 public health nurses, and a number of general nurses, occupational therapists and physiotherapists. Even within the limitations of very difficult financial circumstances the HSE has again begun the recruitment of staff to support our health services and deliver the health services we need in this country.

See this speech in context