Vol. 311 No. 2
asked the Minister for Health if his attention has been drawn to a newspaper report (details supplied) stating that nurses were to receive a special payment of £750 each, part to be paid by the end of last December; and if this report had any foundation.
15.
asked the Minister for Health the progress which has been made by the commission, the setting up of which he announced in the Dáil during Private Members' Business on 22 November 1978.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 and 15 together.
The Irish Nurses Organisation did not accept the commission of inquiry which I had suggested to them and announced on 22 November last. Following that I had further discussions with the Irish Nurses Organisation and the other staff associations concerned. It was quite clear to me that the majority of the staff associations representing nurses felt strongly that any review of nurses pay should be carried out under the existing conciliation and arbitration scheme for health board staff and not by a special commission of inquiry outside the scheme.
The scheme of conciliation and arbitration is regulated by the National Joint Council and the matter was at my suggestion considered by this body at their meeting on 3 January. At that meeting the council set up the necessary procedural machinery to enable such a review to be carried out. The first meeting of the conciliation committee appointed by the council to deal with the matter was held on 23 January and it is the intention of all the parties involved to proceed as rapidly as possible.
My attention has been drawn to the newspaper report referred to by the Deputy. The question of a retrospective payment to nurses is at present being considered at arbitration under the conciliation and arbitration scheme. No finding has yet been issued by the arbitration board but I expect that average payment will be of the order of £130.
Is the Minister saying that the newspaper report referred to in Question No. 14 was without foundation?
I do not know what foundation there was for it but as I have said in the reply the position is that the arbitration board has not reported yet. My information is that the average payment will be of the order of £130.
The Minister must be aware of the extent of the discontent on the part of many nurses as a result of this press report which suggested a figure of £750. If the report was incorrect, why did the Department not issue a denial?
Everybody concerned with the matter—the various staff organisations—knew exactly what was involved. They knew roughly what would be the amount of the retrospective payment.
The national newspaper with the largest circulation carried on its front page a suggestion that the nurses would receive a payment of £750, £130 of which would be paid before Christmas. Is the Minister not aware that many nurses were seriously misled by this report and that many members of the public were seriously misled by it also?
That may be so but I have no responsibility for that.
Has the Minister no responsibility for the report?
I have no responsibility for what appears in newspapers.
The Department could have denied the report.
All the staff organisations concerned knew exactly what was the position. It was not my responsibility to deny the report referred to but I noticed that immediately after its publication some of the nurses' organisations denied it. I was not in a position to say anything about the conciliation and arbitration situation. While that procedure is in progress I am not free to comment on it but all I can say is that the three trade unions concerned and the INO knew exactly what was involved.
The newspaper report stated specifically that Department of Health officials had agreed to the package.
I am not responsible for the newspapers.
But was there not an onus on the Department to say that there had not been agreement?
We cannot chase every rumour that appears in the papers about the Department of Health. We would not attempt to do so.
I would ask the Minister to avoid entering the realm of argument.
