David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)

The amendment is appropriate. Where is it appropriate to deal with these issues?

The purpose of the Bill is to legislate for some of the voluntary contributions which are being made by government officeholders. We are saying quite clearly that it does not go far enough. It is entirely reasonable for us to make that point and table an amendment. It might be uncomfortable for a member of the Labour Party to have to support what he or she is supporting, but we are entitled to table amendments and not point score.

We genuinely believe that people at the top should shoulder their fair share of what is happening in this country. We are told day in and day out by the Leader when he answers questions and when we all raise very important issues that the country is insolvent and the IMF and ECB are in town. We all know that and that significant adjustments in our fiscal situation have to be made. It is the kind of adjustments that are being made which we do not support.

It is entirely reasonable for my party to table an amendment which calls on the Government to accept that it is not acceptable for people to earn €200,000 or €220,000, or €4,000 or €5,000 a week. How could anybody on the Government benches accept such salaries? The Minister of State referred to net income. We deal in gross income because that is what all workers deal in. Different figures are used when it suits Ministers. When they want to quote what middle and low income families earn they give gross amounts but when it comes to Government Ministers they talk about the tax they pay.

Everybody pays tax. We want to address the big salaries which Government Ministers and senior people in the Civil Service are getting, not to mention the Rolls-Royce gold-plated pensions which low and middle-income people in the public sector do not get, and the huge lump sum payments which people have walked away with which our party opposed when the Labour Party was in opposition.

We will not accept criticism from the Labour Party or anybody else to the effect that what we are doing is not appropriate. It is entirely appropriate. It is inappropriate that the Labour Party has abandoned everything it stood for. I agree with the Senator that is inappropriate. It is inappropriate that we would cut child benefit and do all of the other things the Government did in the budget. It is inappropriate that a flat regressive charge of €100 is introduced. It is entirely appropriate for us to say that given the difficult times we are in the pay of everybody who works for the State should be capped at €2,000 a week. I do not see how anybody in this State does not consider €2,000 a week to be a very good wage.