Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

One of the core activities of the Department of the Taoiseach is to provide leadership of the Civil Service renewal programme through the Civil Service management board in collaboration with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. Last month, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform told an Oireachtas committee of his intention to establish an independent review panel to advise on senior public sector appointments and corresponding salaries. The need for this panel is a direct consequences of the opaque method by which the Government appointed the Secretary General to the Department of Health last year and the Government party leaders’ decision to attach an arbitrary 40% pay increase to that position. Can the Taoiseach confirm if this independent review panel has been established and can he tell us what its remit is? Who has been appointed to carry out this work and when is the panel due to conclude its work? Following the Minister’s attendance at last month’s committee meeting, Government leaks to the media indicated that the work of the review panel might result in the final tranche of pay restoration for senior public servants being deferred or cancelled. Will the planned pay restoration in July proceed as agreed or has the Government put this agreement on hold until after the review panel completes its work?

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