Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We have discussed this question at length. I know that many Senators had their own views on the composition of the Low Pay Commission. I am satisfied that it is sufficiently well balanced to represent the interests of all those we seek to capture. Senator Cullinane pointed out that there are trade union representatives who have a lifetime of voluntary and professional representational experience of people in work. We also have people on the Low Pay Commission who have high levels of experience working not just in large corporations but also in smaller companies and representing the interests of smaller companies. I was anxious to capture as much of that as we possibly could.

It is always important to point out that the Low Pay Commission, as it is currently going about its work, has hit the road and has engaged with business people who are operating in sectors of the economy that would be synonymous with low pay. It has also engaged directly with people who are working in low-paid jobs to talk about their experience of what it is like to live on the national minimum wage and all the attendant difficulties that they and their families face. There is little point in setting up a statutory commission that does desk-based analyses of datasets, statistics and complex academic papers on low pay. It is important that members get the opportunity to talk to people who are living that experience directly themselves.

I am very satisfied with the quality of people who have come through the Public Appointments System process, which is an open, transparent process. We had about 151 applicants, to the best of my recollection, and it is often difficult to narrow that down, but I am satisfied that through the open, transparent Public Appointments System we have managed to identify people who are currently making a very valuable contribution to the Low Pay Commission. They will be on three-year terms. I am looking forward to continuing to work with them and I think they will all do an excellent job on the Low Pay Commission. They will not only be representing not only the interests of their own groups, as they would see it. It is important that people leave their jerseys outside and work on the basis of what is in the best interest of those who are on low pay and of job creation in this country.