Ciara Conway (Waterford, Labour)
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To ask the Minister for Social Protection if it is still case that hospital consultants who treat private patients in public beds pay no PRSI on that income; if this is still the case her plans to change this situation and provide a timeline for same; the amount this will be worth to the State on an annual basis; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45348/12]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Permanent and pensionable employees in the public service, other than those who were recruited after 6 April, 1995, are liable to pay social insurance contributions at modified PRSI rates.

Subject to having the required number of PRSI contributions, employees who pay modified contributions may be entitled to the following payments:-

(a) - widow’s/widower’s (contributory) pension;

(b) - guardians payment (contributory);

(c) - bereavement grant, and

(d) - carer’s benefit.

Modified rate contributions are not reckonable for establishing entitlement to State pension (contributory).

While these workers currently pay modified rate of PRSI on earnings derived from their civil-public service employment, they do not pay PRSI on any other streams of income, whether that additional income is earned from a trade or profession or from unearned sources such as income from dividends, deposits and savings and from overseas investments.

It is not possible at this stage to give any reliable estimate of additional revenue to be raised from such measures. Any proposal to bring additional sources of income within the base on which PRSI is charged would have to be considered taking account of all of the implications, including the potential for providing access to additional social insurance entitlements.

However permanent and pensionable employees in the public service recruited after 6 April 1995 are liable to pay social insurance contributions at the class A rate on all their earned income.