Shane Ross (Dublin South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Approximately two weeks ago, I attended in succession the AIB and Bank of Ireland AGMs, as a shareholder in one case, I should declare, and as a proxy in the other. They followed a similar pattern. On the platform was a group of overpaid executives. Off the platform in the audience was a crowd of battered shareholders who had had a difficult time in recent years. In the background was a history of exorbitant standard variable rate mortgages. Both banks have executed a punitive regime on their customers in terms of standard variable rate mortgages.

At the time, the banks also had a fourth important characteristic in common, that being, the largest shareholder in AIB, the Minister for Finance. On behalf of the State, he held 99.8% in AIB and 14% in Bank of Ireland.

This was a heaven sent opportunity for the Minister, particularly given the AGMs' timing, to extract extraordinary leverage on those directors and banks to do something about reducing standard variable rate mortgages. He bottled it. At the end of both AGMs, we found out that the Minister had unfortunately cast in favour of all board resolutions. In the case of AIB, these included an increase in the remuneration of the chair by 33% on last year, from €275,000 to €365,000. When standard variable rate mortgage holders are suffering so much, this seems inappropriate. It seems even more inappropriate that the Minister should be casting those votes in the board's favour at a time when the shareholders were suffering so much. An almost bankrupt State voted for an almost bankrupt bank.

I cannot understand why the Minister did not instead tell the board that not only would he not vote for members' remuneration, but that he would not vote for them to be re-elected. He cast his and our votes in favour of re-electing every director at a time when they were approving this policy, eyeballing him and telling him that, no, they would go ahead and do what they liked. The Minister had a great chance. Unfortunately, he did not take advantage of it.

Why did he not do this? What motivated him to vote for these incredible salaries? I believe that I am right in saying that every non-executive at AIB received at least €80,000 in 2014. How that remuneration was earned differed. Sometimes, it was by way of salary because people sat on board committees. At the end of the day, though, they were all getting more than €80,000 per year, the chairman is now getting €365,000 per year, standard variable rate mortgage holders are suffering and the directors are milking the bank.

The Minister should have taken the opportunity to tell them that they would all be gone unless they executed the policy that he wanted, one that he is now trying to force on them, namely, taking the board's foot off the throats of standard variable rate mortgage holders.

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