Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There should be a no tolerance policy for these salaries. I am sure the Taoiseach is aware, as is the Minister for Finance, that Mr. Boucher is paid nearly four times the salary of the Minister for Finance and over three times the salary of the Taoiseach. That is not making a judgment on the Taoiseach's salary, but it tells us a lot about what these people receive. These are rewards for failure.

The basic problem is the relationship between the Government and the banks. If the Government is so detached from them, and we constantly hear that there is nothing that can be done and that the banks must have a commercial mandate and operate independently, what do the public interest directors do if they do not sit on the remuneration committee and rubber-stamp outrageous amounts of pay? Does the Taoiseach have no influence on them? Can he not call them in and say there can be no more tolerance of these payments and that they are to stop now? At least three of them are ex-politicians. Is it not the view of the Taoiseach and does he not convey it to them in order that they can convey it to the boards in question to stop these outrageous payments? There is a direct line of accountability and the Taoiseach can start it by giving specific instructions that the payments are not to continue.

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