Seán Kyne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There is never a correct time to make a decision such as this and I would not for a minute assume that if the decision was made this time last year, or at any other stage when we had near full employment and balanced books, people would not have objected to it. As somebody who sat at Cabinet and did not receive an additional allowance, it is only right and proper that those who do sit at Cabinet receive it. There were four of us at that stage, two of whom received the allowance. I was not one of them. With regard to equality and the additional responsibilities people have at Cabinet, it is right and proper that they be recompensed for it.

One of the strange anomalies of the system that I have come across in respect of the three positions I have held as a backbencher, Minister of State and Government Chief Whip in the previous Dáil is that I ended up with less money at each step of the promotion. That is what I encountered. I appreciate and accept that all of us in the Dáil and Seanad are well paid. However, it is important that additional work be recognised and it is only right, fair and proper that we use the opportunity when we are amending the principal Act to rectify an anomaly in this case.