I have raised with the Taoiseach on a number of occasions during Leaders' Questions and the Order of Business the outstanding moneys that are owed to what are termed section 39 agencies. These include hospices throughout the country and many disability organisations. There is an incontrovertible link between HSE pay scales and the pay scales of employees in those organisations. They were told, and there is a documentary trail, that they were to implement the FEMPI cuts to pay when those cuts happened. Now they are being denied the necessary funding from the Department in respect of restoration of pay as per the new public service pay agreements. This is very unfair and the State is being very cynical in its treatment of hospices and other section 39 bodies. Tomorrow we will have the health Estimates and the health service plan is due next week. The Taoiseach has indicated that he would examine the situation. Will he confirm that tomorrow's Estimates will provide for funding to cover pay restoration for these agencies' employees?

I cannot confirm at this stage whether it is covered by the Estimates but the Minister for Finance, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, and the Minister for Health, Deputy Simon Harris, are working through the issue. As is often the case, things are perhaps not as straightforward as they may appear. They discovered that some section 39 organisations reduced pay in line with the FEMPI legislation but others did not. Some were compliant with public sector pay rules but others were not. For example, they were paying some of their senior staff salaries over and above what was allowed under public sector pay rules and this has created a degree of difficulty. However, it is intended that the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Health will work through it as quickly as possible to identify those who were compliant with public sector pay rules and applied the FEMPI cuts and those who did not and to examine whether they have been given an adequate increase to cover that.