Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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Question 123: To ask the Minister for Finance the pension arrangements for the ten top National Treasury Management Agency and ten top National Asset Management Agency executives and if the remuneration from these pensions was altered or increased when the executives involved waived their performance related bonuses and or took pay cuts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16105/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I am informed by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) that NTMA employees are members of the NTMA defined benefit superannuation scheme or else have Personal Retirement Savings Accounts (PRSAs). The pension benefits of members of the NTMA superannuation scheme prior to 1 January 2010 are based on final salary. The pension benefits of members who joined the scheme on or after 1 January 2010 are based on career average earnings. The NTMA superannuation scheme is a funded scheme and pension entitlements are within the standard entitlements in the model public sector defined benefit superannuation scheme.

I am also informed by the Agency that performance-related payments do not count towards the calculation of pension benefits which are derived from base salary. Gifting of a proportion of salary to the Exchequer under Section 483 of the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 does not affect the calculation of pension benefits. The pension benefits of NTMA executives have not been altered or increased following either the waiving of performance-related payments or the gifting of a proportion of salary to the Exchequer.

Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 124: To ask the Minister for Finance if he will review a pension issue (details supplied). [16120/12]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The position is that an individual liable to income tax on his or her social welfare pension is entitled to the PAYE tax credit against the tax due on that pension providing, of course, that the PAYE tax credit is not utilised against the tax due on another source of PAYE income that an individual may have. Regarding the example provided by the Deputy, if an individual has a social welfare pension and a source of non-PAYE income, then he or she is entitled to the PAYE tax credit against only the tax due on that social welfare pension and any unused portion of the PAYE tax credit can not be off set against tax due on any other non-PAYE income.