Results 35,721-35,740 of 36,355 for speaker:Pearse Doherty

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: This measure is not aimed at chairpersons of State boards who earn up to €500,000 or other public sector workers on high salaries but people in our constituencies. To amplify my earlier point, based on the most accurate information the Department can furnish, two thirds of public sector workers in County Donegal earn less than €20,000 per annum. The measures proposed will reduce their...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: I am sure the Minister of State is well aware of the number of people earning under €30,000 and under €100,000. It is important to correct the information presented in this House. It is not the case that hundreds are on large salaries; thousands are on large salaries. Some 15,000 public sector workers earn over €100,000 per annum. Some are earning up to €500,000 and it is...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: Section 2 deals with the cuts we will impose on public sector workers. I appeal to the Minister of State that it is not about making savings in the public sector. Sinn Féin has never argued for cuts of €1.3 billion. I urge the Minister of State to amend this section accordingly. Sinn Féin does not believe that €1.3 billion of savings should be made in the public sector. We disagree...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: I apologise, but I want to go back through my earlier point. Perhaps the way in which I articulated it was not clear enough or the Minister of State has deliberately not understood my comments. I will try to make it simple. Regarding the cuts in section 2 specifically, I want the Minister of State to clarify something for me. From the figures furnished to us by his Department, two thirds...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: This is crucial. I have to cast a vote on this legislation.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: To be fair, the Minister of State has asked me to refer to a table that is dealing with self-employed people.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: We are dealing with legislation-----

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: I understand that. The Cathaoirleach is chairing proceedings in a very fair way. This is about fairness. The core of this legislation is what is in these tables. It is a simple question I have asked. I need to understand, with regard to the difference in pay between this month and next month as a result of this section, whether the person earning under €20,000 who is outside the tax...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: The Minister of State is embarrassed to stand up and say that. This legislation is completely unjust and unfair. It is attacking the lowest income earners. It is not about their income. I understand they will take a larger decrease in terms of euro but in terms of percentage, when we compare one pay cheque against the next, the fact is the higher income earner is paying tax at the higher...

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: Will the higher income earner pay less or more in percentage terms?

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: That is not the question I asked.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: That is not the question I asked.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: The Minister of State is ashamed to answer the question I have asked him.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: He should acknowledge that the higher income earner will take less of a percentage decrease than the person on €20,000 in Donegal.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: The Minister of State should not answer a question I did not ask him.

Seanad: Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (18 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: To be fair, he has replied to questions I never asked. He and the Government are ashamed to acknowledge that the higher income earners will take less of a decrease than lower income earners.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (16 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: Energy prices have gone through the roof.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (16 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: I agree with the Minister to some extent and as we approach the finality of this Bill I have no doubt that if the Fine Gael Party was in government I would be sitting on this side of the House opposing the measures it would introduce in a social welfare Bill because our party has shown clearly that social welfare should not be touched. The Minister said that if we did not touch social...

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (16 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: These details relate to that.

Seanad: Social Welfare and Pensions (No. 2) Bill 2009: Committee Stage (Resumed) (16 Dec 2009)

Pearse Doherty: I am talking about what it relates to.