The Government's health reform plans have been dealt another blow with the announcement yesterday of the resignation of one of the most senior officials of the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Pat McLoughlin, national director of the National Hospitals Office, has blamed the Department of Finance for his resignation, saying it had "refused to honour" the terms of the contract agreed with him when he took up the post in January 2005.
Mr McLoughlin, who was also appointed deputy chief executive officer of the HSE last January, will continue in his current position until January 31st.
He told The Irish Times he had never signed a contract, and had continued working in the belief that a contract would be finalised in due course.
Becoming concerned at the delay, he issued an ultimatum that the contract be finalised by the end of October. "They rejected everything," he said of the Department of Finance.
He believed he was entitled to a special allowance as deputy chief executive officer of the HSE on top of his national director's salary of €163,000 a year.
He also believed he was entitled to added years in pension after he finished his five-year term, in the same way as former health board CEOs and county managers were entitled to up to 10 years' added pension benefits on completing their contracts.
The Department of Finance did not sanction either.
"I was left with no option financially; it wasn't worth staying relative to the package," he said.
Expressing disappointment at the department's decision, he said: "I loved the job but there was no point in working for another four years and ending up with less benefits from the pension point of view."
He said he had no idea what he would do next.
The resignation is the latest setback for the HSE, which had major difficulties in filling its top management post.
The HSE said it would seek to fill the post vacated by Mr McLoughlin as soon as possible.
HSE chief executive Prof Brendan Drumm said he was disappointed Mr McLoughlin was leaving the service.
"He has made an outstanding contribution to the development of the HSE, and particularly with regard to the formation of the National Hospitals Office since its inception in January 2005."