Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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Question 19: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the number of chief executives of commercial State companies that have voluntarily reduced their salary by 15%. [20293/11]

Billy Kelleher (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 38: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will detail any positions in which it has been identified that his recent salary announcement may cause difficulties in recruiting suitable persons to senior positions within State agencies. [20312/11]

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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Question 50: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, following his recent announcement of his intent to cap the pay of CEOs of semi-State commercial companies at €250,000, if he intends to extend the review of the current performance bonus schemes for CEOs in commercial semi-State companies to all levels of senior management; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20326/11]

Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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Question 51: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the exceptional circumstances in which the new pay ceilings for chief executive officers of semi-State companies and senior public sector posts may be breached. [20294/11]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 19, 38, 50 and 51 together.

I have recently written to my Ministerial colleagues with Commercial State Companies under their aegis requesting that they arrange to issue letters to the Companies concerned asking that the attention of any staff with salaries in excess of €250,000 be drawn to the Government's request for voluntary waivers of 15% of salary (or by a lesser amount if the application of a 15% waiver would bring their salary level to below the new general pay ceiling). It is far too early to know what the level of response to the request will be.

Any exception to the general pay ceilings of €200,000 and €250,000 for, respectively, senior public service posts and for CEO posts in Commercial State Companies will be subject to my prior consent as Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. I have not prescribed in advance what circumstances may give rise to such exceptions being granted as requests will be determined by the facts of each case.

It is imperative that the public service and Commercial State Companies retain the ability to be able to recruit and retain persons with the necessary skills, abilities and energy to drive the public service and such Companies forward. The potential impact of the imposition of general pay ceilings for senior public service posts and for CEO posts within Commercial State Companies on future recruitment to such posts was therefore a key consideration. However given the current economic challenges facing the country an appropriate balance must be struck. Whether the general pay ceilings will act as an impediment to the recruitment of persons of the necessary calibre or not will only become known when specific posts are advertised. Should difficulties arise they will be considered on a case by case basis.

The recent Government Decision on the introduction of general pay ceilings for senior public service posts and for CEOs of Commercial State Companies also provided for a review to be undertaken of the current system of Performance Related Award Schemes for CEOs of Commercial State Companies by my Department in conjunction with Departments with Commercial State Companies under their aegis. I would expect that the issue of PRAS for staff below this level will be informed by the outcome of this review. In this context it is to be noted that the 2006 Department of Finance Guidelines on "Contracts, Remuneration and Other Conditions of Chief Executives and Senior Management of Commercial State Bodies" states, inter alia, that any performance schemes of senior management below CEO level should be on similar lines to the Government policy in relation to performance pay schemes for CEOs and should not provide for greater benefits.