A CALL has been made for a referendum on the same day as the general election to allow for the salaries of judges to be cut.

Fine Gael justice spokesman Alan Shatter said if the Government was prepared to reduce the minimum wage it should be prepared to support a Private Members’ Bill he had produced to allow for a reduction in judicial wages, “commensurate with the reduction in other public service salaries”.

He said “to maintain confidence in the judiciary, it is important they should been seen as part of the community and not an elite set apart”.

His proposal “is not about singling out or discriminating against or trying to undermine the judiciary. It is trying to ensure that the public retains its respect” for judges.

If the Private Members’ Bill was accepted, the referendum could be held on the same day as the general election.

The Dublin South TD was speaking during the Dáil debate on legislation to cut the minimum wage for new entrants to the workforce, reduce the salaries of members of the Cabinet, and cut public sector pensions.

Mr Shatter said there was a “big gap” between the protections needed for those on the minimum wage and the protections that already applied “in spades to members of the judiciary”.

He pointed out that judges had not been affected by any of the public sector wage decreases that had occurred.

“Even when it came to the pension levy, they were excluded from it; although as a result of public comment and pressure, the vast majority have now opted into that.”

Mr Shatter said he had produced a Private Members’ Bill to allow for a referendum “to ensure if there was a general deduction in public sector wages because of the State suffering a financial emergency, those deductions should apply to members of the judiciary”.