Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Independent)
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14. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his reform of public sector pay, including Garda pay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5718/15]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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There are two measures which currently underpin public service pay and pensions policy: the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Acts (or FEMPI) and the Haddington Road Agreement (HRA).  The HRA, in the Government's view, sets the parameters for pay policy in the public service for until July 2016.  The pay and conditions of members of An Garda Siochana come within the ambit of public service pay policy in this regard. 

The pay reforms in the period from 2009 to 2015, encompassing both the Haddington Road Agreement and the preceding Public Service (Croke Park) Agreement, have seen the Exchequer pay bill reduced by some 20% from peak.  Public servants continue to make a significant contribution to meeting our international fiscal obligations including bringing the general government deficit below 3 per cent of GDP by 2015.  Measures under the FEMPI legislation have achieved a reduction of €2.2 billion in the pay and pensions bill.  Overall, the Public Service gross paybill has reduced from its peak of €17.5 billion in 2009, to an estimated €13.8 billion net in 2014. This has been an important element in reducing public expenditure.

These cost reductions and the substantial productivity increases, including the additional hours, which the Agreement has facilitated, have allowed the Government the scope to reinvest in key frontline services such as education, health and policing by recruiting additional staff to deliver them.  The recent recruitment of some 100 Gardai is very tangible evidence of the reform dividend that will help sustain the Public Service Reform agenda by re-investing some of the efficiency savings we are delivering into improved services.

The public service unions have indicated their intention, should the State's financial circumstances permit, to lodge a pay claim.  If such a claim is made the Government will of course have to consider it, in line with the prevailing fiscal position. Any ensuing discussions will encompass the pay and conditions of all public servants in line with the well established public service industrial relations procedures including those relating to An Garda Siochana and their staff representative associations. The legal position concerning the financial emergency legislation, which has underpinned the public service pay and pension reductions to date, will also have to be addressed in that context while ensuring that this country has a sustainable pay arrangement over the longer term .