Government clears path for formal talks on new public service pay deal to begin next week

Formal negotiations on a new public service pay agreement are to begin next week following sign-off at Thursday’s Cabinet meeting.

Minister for Public Expenditure Michael McGrath told colleagues that preliminary talks over recent weeks had progressed to the point that the sides now warranted formal engagement through the workplace relations commission (WRC).

Unions have indicated a preference for a broad-based agreement taking in elements of a “social wage”, progress on matters such as low pay and childcare and increases to wages in the public sector amid rampant inflationary pressures.

In a statement after the meeting, Mr McGrath said: “I recognise that these will be very challenging negotiations given the impact high levels of inflation are having on living standards of workers but also because of the uncertainty in the global economic outlook.

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“My aim in these talks will be to strike the right balance and seek to achieve a deal that is fair and affordable to both taxpayers generally and public service employees.”

Cabinet also heard that the costs of hiring substitute teachers due to the impact of Covid-19 and providing school transport had pushed spending at the Department of Education above its allocation in the first quarter. The department spent €2.4 billion in the three months to the end of March, some 26 per cent of its annual allocation and €55 million ahead of profile.

Removal of in-patient charges

Elsewhere, the Government aims to get legislation removing in-patient charges for the under-16s passed before the Dáil rises for summer. Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly on Thursday brought forward the outline of a Bill exempting children from statutory public in-patient charges of €80 per night.

The plan is that the measure, announced previously and funded in Budget 2022, will be “finalised as a matter of urgency” with the intention “to progress the legislation through the Houses of the Oireachtas as a priority in the coming weeks,” the Department of Health said.

The Cabinet approved the general scheme of the Bill, which will now be published by the department. Mr Donnelly said that, when enacted, the measure would “ease the financial burden of parents or guardians when bringing their child to hospital for in-patient care, helping to ensure that cost is not a significant consideration for families when children require access to in-patient treatment”.

Fees are currently capped at a maximum of 10 nights, but that can still leave families facing a bill of up to €800. The outline of the legislation is to be sent to the Attorney General for priority drafting.

Mr Donnelly also received Government approval for an expanded flu vaccination programme to be put in place for winter, with free shots for to be offered to all “at risk” groups to minimise potential hospital attendances.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee received Cabinet approval for bespoke legislative amendments relating to the Stardust inquests. The legislation - which is intended to be passed before the summer recess - will enable the coroner to seek the assistance of the Courts Service in selecting a jury for the inquests into the fire at a north Dublin disco in 1981, which killed 48 people.

It will ensure that employers will continue to pay the wages of people summoned to serve on the inquest jury, an attempt to address concerns raised by victims’ families. The inquiries are expected to run for a number of months.

Urgent legislation

Ms McEntee also sought approval for urgent legislation which will establish a right for any member of the Garda to conduct a prosecution, whether or not they initiated it. It follows a recent High Court ruling on the use of so-called “court presenters” which held that only the Garda who initiated a prosecution could conduct the proceedings in the District Court. This threatened to cause serious issues in progressing cases and it was warned that significant disruption would follow if remedial legislation was not put in place.

Cabinet also approved plans for legislation to streamline the State response to registering and extending social protection supports to Ukranian refugees. Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien also told Cabinet that almost 16,000 residential units have had conditions restricting bulk buying attached to their planning permission since last year, when the new rules were introduced.

Minister also approved the appointment of a new member to the Nama commission of investigation, which is examining the toxic debt agency’s disposal of its Northern Irish loans, following the death of its sole member, Judge John D. Cooke. The new member is Susan Gilvarry, currently a solicitor for the commission.