Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I share the disappointment of the Sinn Féin Deputies that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Michael McGrath, is not here for this matter. I mean no disrespect to the Ministers of State who are present. It is incredible that the Minister, Deputy McGrath, is not present, but it is more incredible that there have been several Cabinet meetings so far this week. That is not a good image for a Government that is in its early days to portray. A Government that holds so many meetings in such a short time is a Government that is under serious pressure.

The belated July stimulus will be announced today after the Government spent the past three weeks inventing a mini July stimulus for itself. There are now a near-record 20 junior Ministers. There have not been so many Ministers of State since the days of Bertie Ahern and Charlie McCreevy. Some 17 special advisers are soon to be appointed to work with the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the Green Party leader and Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Deputy Eamon Ryan. As has been noted on the record, yesterday it emerged that the three super junior Ministers will receive an additional €16,000 each in allowances. I am old enough to remember when two super junior Ministers were sufficient. This is a very anxious time for families and businesses, but there is no sign whatsoever of the Government tightening its belt and acknowledging or understanding the pain and difficulty in which many people find themselves.

This approach is absolutely tone-deaf to the day-to-day needs of families across the country.

They say a good start is half the battle but most people are watching the first few weeks of this Government's tenure and observing its behaviour from behind their hands and behind the couch, it is such a car crash. Much of what is in this document is actually historic. In many ways, going through these Revised Estimates is almost pointless. This is no way to present the Estimates. They are quite opaque and lacking in detail. We have no real idea or granular detail regarding how much of this money has been spent, nor do we have sufficient time to forensically examine expenditure, which is unfortunate to say the least. Today we will get the first glimpse of the economic trajectory and philosophy of this Government. Unfortunately, I get a sense from newspapers and media reports in recent days that in many respects it is going to be a case of "Meet the new Government, same as the old Government" only with a small change of emphasis.

What lessons have been learned from the overspend on the children's hospital debacle? The capital works management framework has been established. This is an important body charged with managing an enormous amount of public expenditure over the next number of years in the context of Project Ireland 2040. We need to ensure that we get value for money and that cost overruns are managed properly, transparently and accountably.

Can the Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW advise which of the office's sites have been most impacted in terms of the fall-off in admission revenue this year? Clearly, the figures there are very concerning. In terms of subhead B.5, could the Minister of State also comment on what sites and buildings the OPW intends to purchase this year? Are any current leases being reviewed given the number of public and civil servants who are working from home. That should be the new normal. They should be supported to do that and the public service should lead by example. Are any expensive leases being reviewed in terms of cost-saving measures for the State?

In response to our Sinn Féin colleague's question about the comparatively high increase of 60% in the expenditure on the allocation to the Secret Service, it was stated that there is a convention in this House that this is passed on the nod. Clearly, that is a secret and we have to accept it.

On the Special EU Programmes Body, has any progress been made in respect of the Narrow Water bridge initiative involving north County Louth and south County Down?

There is a programme for Government commitment on transitioning the national minimum wage to a real living wage. A good place to start would be for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to take responsibility for ensuring that all public and civil servants receive the hourly rate of the minimum wage in terms of their salaries. There are several thousand who do not and I would like the Ministers of State to elaborate on plans that the Department may have to progress this initiative across the public service. The State must lead by example.

One of the Ministers of State might outline the Department's commitments and those of the new group of Ministers in terms of the reform agenda, particularly around political reform. That agenda has been let slide since 2016, which is a concern. Government must happen transparently and accountably. There are things that we need to do that we are not doing. Some of the behaviour over recent days in terms of the reduction in the number of people who can be members of committees, issues in respect of speaking time and so on constitutes a flagrant abuse of this house and of our rights as Deputies. Those rights need to be protected. I want to hear from the Ministers of State regarding the political reform agenda.

There has been a long-running open sore in the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in respect of the pension rights of community employment supervisors. There was a 2007 Labour Court recommendation and a forum was established by the former Minister, Deputy Howlin. That has essentially been ignored and bypassed by the Department over the last couple of years. Can the Ministers give any clarity on the provision of pensions and redundancy payments, if the need arises, for community employment supervisors in the future?

See this speech in context