FORMER Bord na Mona chairman, Mr Brendan Halligan, has said he will be "delighted" to speak publicly to a Dail committee about the controversial remuneration package paid to Bord na Mona managing director Mr Eddie O'Connor.
Speaking to The Irish Times yesterday, Mr Halligan said he would be pleased to attend a public hearing on the matter at the Dail Committee on State Sponsored Bodies if invited to do so.
Mr Halligan was speaking after a meeting of the committee yesterday decided that Mr Halligan, Mr O'Connor and current Bord na Mona chairman, Mr Pat Dineen, should be invited to attend a future session when the circumstances surrounding Mr O'Connor's remuneration package will be investigated.
A spokesman for Mr O'Connor said that he had no comment on any further inquiry into his remuneration package. Mr Dineen said he would not be making any further statements about the company until an investigation by accountants Price Waterhouse is completed.
The committee's chairman, Mr Liam Kavanagh, said it would be requesting Mr O'Connor, former chairman Mr Halligan, current chairman Mr Dineen, and the Secretary of the Department of Transport, Energy and Communications, Mr John Loughrey, to answer its questions.
The committee will, however, be relying on the co operation of the executives to attend the hearing and has no powers to compel them to appear. In line with regulations governing civil servants, Mr Loughrey must attend any such, hearing.
However, the committee's investigation will not begin until two other investigations currently under way are completed, Mr Kavanagh said. Price Waterhouse is investigating Mr O'Connor's pay deal at the request of the chairman and board of Bord na Mona.
The Minister for Energy, Mr Lowry, has also requested a full report on the remuneration received by Mr O'Connor during his nine years as managing director after it emerged that he had received £53,000 in unvouched expenses over three years to the end of last March.
The committee will request access to the findings of these investigations as soon as they are made available Mr Kavanagh said.
At a meeting yesterday, the joint committee also agreed to look at the remuneration of other top executives in the semi state sector to determine if the salaries and benefits offered within the sector were comparable with those paid in the private sector.
Speaking at tile meeting, Fine Gael TD Mr Jim O'Keeffe said it was the committee's responsibility to investigate Mr O'Connor's remuneration package, stressing that a public hearing was essential all the facts. Allegations which had surfaced, he said, were "very serious" and suggested that Government guidelines on remuneration had been, clearly breached.
Fianna Fail's Mr Martin Cullen added that a full investigation was now necessary, particularly if EU funding is to be sought to finance a new peat powered plant which is, currently being considered by the company. Mr Cullen said it was vitally important to clarify the matter for everybody, including Bord na Mona's staff.
In addition, he said, tile committee should widen its investigation to look at general remuneration levels for senior management in semi states to determine whether the pay packages allowed under the current Government guidelines were sufficient to attract the best people to run these companies. Mr Cullen said a "level headed" approach should be adopted in reviewing salary structures.
However, Ms Frances Fitzgerald, Fine Gael, stressed that it was important that the joint committee's investigation would do nothing to undermine the competitiveness of semi state companies. While the controversy has raised great public interest, she said the committee should be seen to do everything to support the management and workers of Bord na Mona.
