Cabinet to discuss benchmarking report

The Cabinet is due to discuss the benchmarking report on pay for public servants at its weekly meeting this morning.

Finance Minister Charlie McCreevy is expected to brief his colleagues about the report, which recommends an average pay rise of 9% for Ireland’s 230,000 public sector workers.

These increases are expected to cost around €1bn, with 25% of that due to be paid immediately.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has already described this as a 'horrendous' addition to the public sector pay bill.

Following today’s cabinet meeting, the Government will enter talks with the Irish Congress of Trade Unions’ public services committee to begin negotiating the implementation of the report.