Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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Question 362: To ask the Minister for Finance the way in which performance pay in the public service is structured; the people who are entitled to it; the scale on which it is set; the way in which the level of payment is linked to measures of performance; the proportion of cases where performance has been found not to warrant maximum payment; the amount awarded annually to date in 2006; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5423/06]

Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Following recommendations made by the Review Body on Higher Remuneration in the Public Sector, schemes of performance-related awards were introduced for the levels of deputy secretary and assistant secretary in the Civil Service, the deputy commissioner and assistant commissioner ranks in the Garda Síochána and the ranks of brigadier general and major general in the Defence Forces.

The schemes of awards are based on performance by reference to demanding targets. The pool for performance awards is 10% of the pay bill for the group concerned. Within that overall limit individuals can receive payments of up to 20% of pay.

Decisions on awards are made by the Committee for Performance Awards, CPA, which includes a majority of private sector members. The main roles of the committee are to monitor the application of the scheme of performance-related awards and to bring independent judgment to bear in approving objectives for the persons covered by the scheme and in approving recommendations for awards.

Details of the procedures, the numbers covered by the schemes, the range of awards and the total amounts paid in Departments are outlined in the annual reports of the committee, available on the website www.finance.gov.ie. The Deputy will note from the annual reports of the CPA that it is rare for an officer to be paid the maximum award of 20%. In 2004, of the 207 persons who participated in the schemes, the maximum award was made in only three cases. The maximum award was not made in any case in 2002 or 2003. Awards for performance in 2005 have not yet been agreed.

Similar schemes of performance-related pay operate for senior grades in the health service and the local authorities. The Committee for Performance Awards in the local government sector deals with the assessment of performance for senior managers in local authorities. That committee's reports for 2003 and 2004 are available in the Oireachtas Library. Awards for 2005 have not yet been approved. A similar committee operates for senior managers in the health service but these arrangements are being adapted to reflect the establishment of the Health Service Executive.

Schemes of performance-related pay can also apply to the chief executive officers of non-commercial State-sponsored bodies and, in some cases, to the second tier of management. The review body considered that certain conditions should be in place in non-commercial State-sponsored bodies before schemes of performance-related awards were introduced for the CEOs of those bodies. Where these conditions are met, the board of the body concerned can submit a scheme to the parent Department and, subsequently, my Department for approval. These schemes are also based on the achievement of stretched targets and provide for a maximum bonus of 20% of pay. The guidelines provide that awards of between 15% and 20% should arise only in the most exceptional situations where performance has surpassed all reasonable expectations and has resulted in the achievement of a major goal of the body. Decisions on the level of payment to be awarded are the responsibility of the board of the body concerned.