Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

If the Minister tells me his document was not detailed enough I will accept that, but it was the principal reason given.

According to the Minister, the Supplementary Estimate in respect of the superannuation Vote arises from the fact that there have been approximately 250 more retirements to date in 2014 than were forecast for the full year. The figure is also 280 higher than the 2013 figure. This is the principal reason given by the Minister in his opening statement for the Supplementary Estimate of €27 million he is seeking. Based on his figure of 250 more retirements than anticipated, the average cost per additional retirement is €108,000 per person. Last year, the average cost of retirement per person was €56,536. According to the Estimate provided at the beginning of 2014, the Minister had budgeted for 850 retirements at a cost of €58 million. According to the Supplementary Estimate, there will be 1,100 retirements costing €87 million this year, which gives an average cost per retirement of €79,000. The Minister is saying the additional 250 retirements require a Supplementary Estimate of €27 million.