Woods to get €75,000 pension windfall
Mr Woods’ lengthy ministerial career ended in 2002 but the FF TD failed to apply in time for the ministerial pension to which he was entitled.
It is understood that when he did finally apply officials in the Department of Finance brought his case to the attention of Mr Cowen.
Mr Cowen subsequently decided to insert a clause in a new bill which would loosen the existing rules and allow Mr Woods claw back the full pension payments.
If the bill is passed by the Oireachtas as expected this week, Mr Woods will receive approximately €75,000 in pension arrears.
The pension is entirely separate to his TD’s salary. Mr Woods earns €121,000 a year as a TD and chairman of the Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs.
The Markets in Financial Instruments and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill goes before the Seanad today.
Section 16 of the bill proposes to amend the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act 1938, which forms the basis for calculating pensions to ministers.
The amendment would provide for a minister’s pension to be backdated to the date the person became eligible for it rather than the date he or she applied for it. The present situation is that a minister leaving office receives severance payments for two years. After two years, the former minister can apply for his or her pension, but must do so within six months of the severance payments ending.
If they fail to do so, the pension cannot be backdated. Instead, the pension will only be payable from the date of application.
The department defended the amendment yesterday, saying it had made clear last April that it would be making such a change.
“The amendment does no more than bring the payment of pension into line with civil servants who make late application for a preserved pension,” the department said. “In these cases the payment is backdated automatically.”
Mr Woods could not be reached for comment yesterday.
