Dan Boyle (Green Party)

We have heard of the unpalatable choices that have had to be made in the past week. There seems to be an expectation, fostered by many on the Opposition side, that everything that can be done should be done now. I am not sure whether that is an acceptable economic strategy to be following. We are dealing with an immediate situation where cuts of €2 billion are required owing to the shortfall in tax receipts in November and December. That has caused us to make decisions on public expenditure that were agreed only last October. The biggest element of public expenditure agreed in last October's budget relates to public sector pay. It comes to around 35% of all public expenditure in any given year.

The options are either to reduce the number of people working in the public sector, to pay them less, or to look at how additional costs are achieved, particularly regarding pension entitlements. These entitlements in the public sector are better than those that exist in the private sector. With the imposition of this new levy, they are still nowhere near the economic cost of providing such pensions. When we face that reality, we have a further job to do about the sustainability of pensions across our society. We provide far more in relief for private pensions than we pay into the State pension every year. Now we have a third element on how we treat public sector pensions.

The reality is that there are distinct differences between public sector pensions and pensions that are available to people in the private sector. Many of the pay-related pension increases that apply in the public sector do not apply in the private sector. We have to accept that it is not sustainable that some former senior civil servants, including former Secretaries General, are now earning more in their pensions than they were paid to work as civil servants in this State. We cannot afford that on an ongoing basis. As a society, we need to think about what we can afford and how we can afford it.

The reality of what needs to be done about other issues is that at the end of this year, we will have to decide how to save a further €4 billion. At the end of 2010, we will have to decide how to save another €4 billion. At the end of 2011, we will have to decide how to save a further €3.5 billion. The measures we take to that end will not even balance our books. According to our projections, all they will do is bring us back in line with the 3% expenditure rule set out in the Maastricht criteria. This country will still be spending more than it can afford. These drastic circumstances require difficult decisions to be taken. Action is needed in response to what is happening.

I accept that the public outcry that has resulted from the unpopular decisions that were announced earlier this week is partly based on the desire to see certain actions taken concurrently. People's anger in respect of the financial services sector is justifiable. They want action to be taken in relation to remuneration. They want criminal action to be taken against those who have brought our economy to its current position. Regardless of the amount of money it will save the State, there is a responsibility on the political sector to play a particular role in saving money. A symbolic gesture would be appreciated by the wider public. I do not get a sense from Senators in this Chamber, or from people in wider politics in general who have contributed to this debate before now, that they are prepared to take such a jump.

The political representatives of the people need to consider how costs in the political system can be reduced to an extent that is equal to or greater than that being experienced by those outside that system. I refer to people who will now have to make added contributions and to the 40,000 people who have joined the dole queue over the last month. If public representatives do not take action in his respect, we will be doing a disservice to our roles. We should send out a clear signal that we accept the need to address issues like the payment of additional expenses and the receipt of pensions by people who are still in public office. If political parties and politicians are collectively not prepared to accept that need, regardless of who is in government, they will not receive the respect or acceptance of the public. In such circumstances, the public will not buy in to what it is being asked to accept in this package and in future packages. It will be possible to prevent that if the measures that are needed are announced and implemented as quickly as possible.

We have already provided for the recoupment of €1 billion in 2010 — money that would otherwise have been spent — by imposing a pay freeze rather than the national wage agreement. We intend to consider the proposals included in the report of the Commission on Taxation. I expect that any new taxes will be aimed at those in our society who have most, but are contributing least. That is the essence of one of the issues of public concern. If those of us who are part of the political system want to retain any sense of respect, we need to be prepared to take the type of decisive action that is needed. It is a simple equation. If we are not prepared to countenance a tiny reduction in overall public expenditure — I suggest that €20 million can be saved from the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission's annual budget of €100 million — we have no right to talk about the additional measures that are affecting the wider public.

We have to do things in a better, more efficient and more honest way. I have not yet seen a willingness on the part of politicians, across all political parties, to change the way we behave within our political system. We need to send out the right signals by showing a degree of empathy and by making changes — in the Oireachtas, in the first instance, and subsequently in the rest of society — that will give us a better society and a more sustainable economy. Until that happens, debates of this nature carry very little worth, to be frank. I hope this House can send a message to the effect that the Government's consideration of these issues will result in adequate decisions being made at an early date.