Time running out to agree public pay deal, says Howlin

A renewed attempt to cut €300m from the public service pay bill will be decided by the Cabinet in two weeks following warnings from the Government that time was “running out” for a deal.

Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin said last night that he was not a “believer in austerity” but the Government was entering a “critical time” of discussions with the troika on its bailout exit.

Cabinet earlier in the day gave the go-ahead for the reopening of talks with unions, with the Taoiseach insisting that the figures had not changed.