Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton has insisted his rift with Minister for Social Protection Joan Burton on sick pay is a “private” matter for Cabinet.
The Ministers remain at odds over Ms Burton’s proposal that employers should be required to provide sickness payments during the first four weeks of a claim.
Mr Bruton circulated a discussion paper at a Fine Gael meeting on budgetary matters last week strongly criticising the proposal.
Yesterday he told RTÉ Radio One’s This Week programme a “collective decision” would be taken by Government. “This is a private meeting where I’m briefing people on issues across the whole employment spectrum . . . this is a private discussion within Cabinet ultimately to make the decision.” The Coalition promised a new approach to the budgetary process in its programme for government, saying it would be open “to the full glare of public scrutiny”.
The Irish Times reported last week that Mr Bruton told his party the proposal would be inefficient as a revenue-raising measure.
Ms Burton renewed her appeal, abandoned ahead of last December’s budget, when it emerged that an IMF staff report last month highlighted that Ireland was out of line with other countries in relation to sick pay.
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