Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)

I acknowledge the Deputies' concerns on this issue and have reflected on the proposal since Committee Stage. However, the issue of severance packages to chief executive officers is more general than the specific range of this legislation. The Government is reviewing the issue of severance and retirement terms of chief executive officers as part of a broader examination that is under way following the publication of the Green Paper on pensions. Our objective is to put in place a pensions system that is financially, economically and socially sustainable. We have taken this matter forward and are now at an advanced stage in the development of a new and comprehensive pensions framework. The Minister for Finance has corresponded directly with the Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts on the broader issues raised by the two Deputies. However, these matters are best dealt with in the context of a wide-ranging review of State bodies.

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