Treacy to donate pension to charity

FORMER FIANNA Fáil minister Noel Treacy says he will donate his pension to charity, as the Government narrowly defeated a Fine Gael demand for an immediate end to the payment of pensions to serving politicians.

Mr Treacy told the Dáil before the 68-66 vote decision that he would stand “in solidarity with the people of Ireland and with the membership of this parliament”.

The Government has rejected as unconstitutional the Opposition call for legislation to immediately end the payment to almost 30 serving TDs and Senators who held previous posts as ministers.

Legislation has been passed which will end such payments after the next election.

The Galway East TD was the last remaining former minister still serving in the Oireachtas who had not stated whether he would hold onto or forgo his pension. Pat the Cope Gallagher MEP has yet to announce his decision.

On Wednesday during the pensions debate, former minister Dr Jim McDaid said he would give his pension to a “worthy cause”. Dr McDaid had said he did not deserve a ministerial pension and would give it up if there was a rational debate on the issue.

Mr Treacy said yesterday: “I, who get a mere net pension of €167 per week, cannot afford to give up that pension but I am . . . in the interests of equity in this House, solidarity with my colleagues, and indeed under the great generosity of the Opposition who have decided that they’re going to donate their pensions to various bodies and organisations.”

He added: “I am prepared to allocate my pension to various voluntary bodies and charitable organisations in the interest of that solidarity and that transparency.”

Mr Treacy described the debate as “outrageously hypocritical” and said it was “ironic” that in 1997, when the rainbow coalition left government after two years, it sought to have a pension entitlement for TDs after two years as a minister.

Minister of State Mary White said the Green Party had always objected to the dual payments system which she described as a “travesty”.

However she described Fine Gael and Labour moves on the issue as “bogus” and said if Mr Kenny “wants to show real leadership he will stop his party from taking corporate donations”.

Lucinda Creighton (FG, Dublin South East) said “any TD or Senator, whether as a former garda or as a teacher, should not continue to receive a pension “while drawing down a public salary”.

She also referred to retired former public servants who now worked as advisers “spin doctors and handlers” and said “if they are in receipt of major public salaries, they should not be drawing down pensions from previous public employment”.

Michael D’Arcy (FG, Wexford) rejected claims that the issue was a matter of principle and not about the money.

It “has to do with greed and self-preservation, and, in this instance, a lethal disconnection between a government and the people it is supposed to serve”.

He also sharply criticised Dr McDaid.

“The current sad episode in Irish politics has been characterised by an unprecedented level of uncaring arrogance on the part of some former ministers. While Deputy Jim McDaid is the most vocal of them, he also speaks for others who have not surrendered their pensions. I am informed the deputy is an excellent and professional general practitioner. I do not have any confidence in his professionalism as a deputy.”

Damien English (FG, Meath East) said: “It was never right that a sitting deputy would also draw a ministerial pension – it should never have been introduced.”

It “was wrong in itself, even while I accept that deputies of all parties went along with it.”