Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Question 6: To ask the Minister for Transport; Tourism and Sport the progress made to date in finding a replacement for a person (details supplied) as chief executive of the Dublin Airport Authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1556/12]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Under Article 29 of the Air Navigation and Transport (Amendment) Act 1998, the recruitment of a CEO is a matter for the board of the Dublin Airport Authority and not one in which I have a legal function. I understand, however, that the authority has advertised the post in the national press. The contract of the current CEO runs until next April. The terms and conditions under which appointments such as that in question are made are subject to my approval and that of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. I am expecting a formal request in due course when the board has selected a candidate.

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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The Minister will be aware that the outgoing CEO, Mr. Collier, announced on 15 November, almost two months ago, his retention to resign. I am concerned about the length of time it has taken to begin the process of recruiting a new CEO. The Minister is correct to state advertisements have been prepared. However, I am not sure whether these have yet appeared. If they have done so, it was only in recent days. While the Minister does not have a function in the appointment of the chief executive officer, he does have a function in the appointment of the chairman. Has a tardy approach been taken to appointing a new CEO because there has not been a chairman in place since last May? The previous chairman, Mr. Dilger, resigned in April. I understand his contract ended or that he terminated his employment on or about 31 May last. It took until November for the Minister to approach the chairman designate who came before the Joint Committee on the Environment, Transport, Culture and the Gaeltacht this week. While the individual in question is an excellent candidate and would be very good for Dublin Airport, he has limited, if any, experience in the airline sector. That creates a problem for the DAA because in the coming months, following the departure of Mr. Collier, there will be a period during which a CEO will not be in place. The chairman designate has indicated that it will take approximately nine months to appoint a new CEO. During that period the authority will be run by a chairman who has little or no experience in the day-to-day running of an airport. The chairman designate is being placed in a difficult position and our airport infrastructure is being put in a perilous position. Why did it take so long to appoint a new chairman?

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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To clarify, the position of CEO was advertised in the press in recent weeks. In general, the search for a CEO to head up a company of this size and nature can take up to nine months. The chairman designate who was approached in November is soon to be appointed. As the Deputy stated, he appeared before the joint committee earlier in the week. I understand he gave an extremely good account of himself during the hearing. I am sure his appointment will be confirmed by the Government shortly. In addition, I will be appointing a new board for the DAA in the next fortnight.

It has taken time to put matters in order, as it is not easy to find very good people to chair State companies. It is easy enough to get someone to sit on a board, but it is quite difficult to encourage a person to take on the chairmanship of the board of a State company. This is owing to the demands involved, the thankless nature of the job and the very poor remuneration for those who chair such boards. After tax, those who chair State boards are paid €7,000 or €8,000 per year for work which could take between ten and 20 hours work a week to complete. It is difficult, therefore, to find people to serve. However, I must state those I have found to chair these boards to date are excellent individuals. Before anyone asks, none of them has Fine Gael connections. It takes time to find the right person. However, it is worth taking that time.

Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I have no issue with the calibre of the individual whom the Minister has appointed to the chair. He is a candidate of exceptional quality and skill but he does not have the experience he will need in the absence of a chief executive and for this I am disappointed it has taken the Minister so long. Six months is an undue period. The Minister should have been able to find a chairman more quickly.

During the course of the committee discussions, the chairman-designate made clear that he believes the fact that the new pay cap will be in place will be an inhibiting factor in respect of the appointment of a new chief executive. Has the Minister given any consideration to lifting the cap for the appointment of a chief executive for the Dublin Airport Authority, taking into account that no taxpayer's money is involved and the DAA is self-sufficient, especially in light of the points made by the chairman-designate? Does the Minister wish to be in a position whereby he will be obliged to take a second, third or fourth-rate candidate when he could enter negotiations with the chairman and find the best person to lead the airports of the country in future?

Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)
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I met the chairman and we had a long discussion at the committee meeting. There was a concern in terms of the issue of the pay cap of €250,000 set by the Minister. It is too much one way or the other but in this time of austerity and given all that is happening in the economy, I have no wish to see us going beyond that amount. The chairman indicated he had no problem with this in general. I have no arguments with his credentials. He seems to be good as far as I am concerned. However, it is an immense job. There is a €500 million pension fund which has many problems. It is a profitable company and I do not believe the taxpayer should have to put much to it. It is an urgent matter.

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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I reassure Deputy Dooley that there will be an acting chief executive in place during the interregnum and the acting chief executive will have a great deal of experience of running airports. The chairman-designate stated that he believed the salary cap would inhibit the DAA in its search for a new chief executive but he made his position clear. He stated that the board and the chairman of the DAA would comply with Government policy, whatever the pay cap.

The Government has no plans to reconsider the pay cap although the point Deputy Dooley makes is valid. The chief executive is not paid by the Exchequer but by the DAA. The higher the salary, the higher the tax returned to the taxpayer, a point many people do not fathom.

The current chief executive is leaving. I am disappointed he is going because he has done a good job. He is leaving to run London City Airport, an airport with one ninth the number of passengers of the three State airports combined. He is leaving for a salary of £410,000 plus a bonus of between 55% and 95%. The chief executive of Manchester Airport, a similar sized airport to Dublin, receives a salary of £515,000 before a bonus. This is something we should bear in mind in this State. While many people in the State are paid more than their equivalents in other countries, this is not the case when it comes to the chief executive of the DAA.