Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy might be confused as there are many different inspectors and sections in our Department. The inspectors who look after this have nothing to do with trying to figure out if a person is on a jobseeker's payment. That is somebody else's job. The inspectors involved with assessing insurability contributions go into a job and see that a person is in class S when he or she should be in class K. They will reflect that and get it changed. It is about working with both the employer and employee to ensure the right classification of a social insurance contribution is made on behalf of employees, and if it is not, to back-track it and ensure dues to the State are paid.

There is also the scope section within the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection. Any of the people suggested by the Deputy who may find themselves in positions where they know they are not really self-employed can make a complaint or inquiry to the Department any day of the week and we will follow it up. The problem is these people do not do so. They do it in small numbers. My belief is many of the 312,000 people perhaps do not know about the scope unit and we will address that in the new year.

I am not sure I said the report was going to a sub-committee of the Cabinet. That might have been the other report on the pensions anomaly. I have so many reports coming out of my ears at this stage, it is not funny. This report is not going to a sub-committee of the Cabinet but it is going to Cabinet in the next couple of weeks. The only reason I am holding off is because I am not prepared to send a report to the Cabinet without clear, precise, specific recommendations as to how we can address the matter. That is what I am considering now with the Minister for Finance.

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