Results 2,741-2,760 of 21,440 for speaker:Mary Lou McDonald

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I understand, but I am talking specifically about the list of 20 and the extended list of 35. What was the HSE's role? I understand it was a much longer list but what was the HSE's role in terms of saying which would be the 20 and then the additional 15?

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I do not accept that it is. The policy in terms of the decision as to what the criteria might be is clearly a policy matter. That is the kick for the Minister but the application of the criteria, which I am trying to establish here, would be with the involvement of or led out by the HSE and the Department. I am trying to establish the role of the HSE in compiling the list of 20 and then...

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: The HSE would, therefore, have been involved in applying the deprivation index. That is how the first 20 were arrived at.

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: The HSE would have been involved in applying the additional criteria to identify the additional 15.

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: In other words, the HSE applied the deprivation index according to the three-times multiplier, after which there would have been a certain ordering of the 300 centres that were already drawn up from 2007, as Mr. O'Brien indicated.

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: What was the change regarding the additional 15?

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: Just so we are clear, the HSE did not have the same involvement in terms of adding the additional 15 sites. I understand HSE personnel were deeply involved in applying the criteria, that the list was drawn up and 20 centres were identified. Is that where the HSE's involvement ended?

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I understand that, but I am still dealing with selection. Had the HSE any involvement in terms of identifying the additional 15 sites? I understand from the witnesses that it did not.

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: That is interesting. I find that somewhat astonishing. I would have believed that Mr. O'Brien would have asked. I would have assumed that the pool of people who would have been deeply involved with the application of criteria and the drawing up of lists would have been fairly limited. I did not believe an extensive trawl of staff would be required. Mr. O'Brien has been quite categorical...

Public Accounts Committee: Vote Management and Budgetary Situation in 2012: Discussion with Department of Health and HSE (9 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: Can Mr. O'Brien check that?

Fiscal Responsibility Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I take it from Deputy McHugh's remarks he is likening Anglo-Irish relations to the relationship between the Labour Party and Fine Gael. May we offer our services in the event the parties need to strike a Good Friday-type arrangement? I hope the Labour Party's better instincts would win out in that particular encounter.

Fiscal Responsibility Bill 2012: Second Stage (Resumed) (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: As other speakers noted, this week the IMF admitted it had been wrong about the impact austerity would have on the Irish economy. It told us it had not foreseen the massively damaging impact tax hikes and cuts to expenditure would have on jobs and spending. It is very hard to believe that the IMF, or indeed any economist or commentator worth her or his salt, could have believed that taking...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Staff Issues (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide details of the public sector voluntary redundancy scheme recently announced; if he will identify the areas in the public sector from which these redundancies are to be targeted; the targeted net saving to the Exchequer; and the provisions that will be put in place to protect service provision for citizens. [43503/12]

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Staff Issues (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I thank the Minister for his response. I assume that this new scheme is designed to reduce numbers in the public sector by 10,000 by 2014. That was the Minister's stated target. I am working on the assumption that this is the mechanism that he has identified for doing that, but he might confirm that for me when he responds. The difficulty that my party has here is a fundamental one and...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Staff Issues (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: Can the Minister assure us that all of the data, not a half-baked version of it, in respect of the so-called surpluses, the areas where there are staffing shortfalls and the full detail of any cost-benefit analysis will be published in full? On publication of that data, I ask the Minister to allow us the opportunity to debate and discuss it, rather than have him as Minister simply making an...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Staff Issues (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: One gets to a point with this theory of more with less where one runs out of rope eventually. The Minister is clearly minded to shed 10,000 more public servants. I ask him again to give an absolute commitment that the full details will be provided. I am labouring this point because when information was published in respect of, for instance, premium pay and allowances, it was not in any way...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Allowances Review (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will make a statement on his recent review of public service allowances and premium payments; if he intends to make public all data relating to the allowances including the grade and pay level of recipients; and the way in which he intends to deal with these allowances and premium payments into the future. [43502/12]

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Allowances Review (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: The business cases to which the Minister referred were flimsy to say the least. In many instances they were simply reiterations of a status quo which was not to be disturbed and there was little substantive analysis. He has made a dog's ear of the matter. He backed away from his own estimate of €75 million but, worse, he deliberately targeted new entrants, just as he did in respect...

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Allowances Review (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: It is completely unfair.

Ceisteanna - Questions - Priority Questions: Public Sector Allowances Review (10 Oct 2012)

Mary Lou McDonald: I ask the Minister to hold his horses. A number of issues have to be factored in if we are to get to the bottom of the question of allowances. One of the core considerations has to be pay equity in the system. A small group of individuals enjoy very high incomes, whereas the mass of public and civil servants are on modest wages. When one makes a calculation on premium payments and...