Tommy Broughan (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister will appoint the six members. I hope that they will be representatives of the trade union movement, industry and the public service in order to provide the kind of background that is required.

What is the Minister's opinion on the cost and continuing work of the body? I referred to the role of IFAC. The Minister is not putting the new body on a statutory basis. Will it continue? It is outside the industrial relations machinery. Has the Minister prioritised for it the aim of getting rid of FEMPI and restoring public service pay, given the fact that our citizens in the public service are generally low paid and bore the brunt of the banking crash? The CPSU trade union has cautiously welcomed the commission's establishment, but it mentioned that we needed to be cognisant of the fact that the cost of living in Ireland was one of the highest in the EU.

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