Pensions and perks to give soft landing

BERTIE AHERN will still retain much of the income and perks of his job, if not the power and influence, when he resigns as Taoiseach on May 6.

His generous pension and other entitlements as a long server in high office mean he won’t have to worry about bills or transport for the rest of his life.

Currently on a salary of more than €270,000 plus expenses, his pay for continuing as a TD will fall to €101,446 which is the basic rate plus a long-server’s allowance. In addition to that he is eligible for a TD’s expenses allowance of up to €65,000.

More importantly, he will be entitled to a ministerial pension equating to 75% of his taoiseach’s salary — or €202,500— for the first six months after his resignation, and 60% of the salary after that — or €162,000.

This time next year, presuming he remains on as a TD as has been indicated, he will have an annual income from politics of more than €263,000 before expenses — very close to what he currently earns.

Those figures would have been higher had Mr Ahern not decided to postpone the pay increase approved for TDs and ministers late last year. The 14% pay rise recommended for the taoiseach would have pushed his salary up by another €38,000 to €310,000, and his pension would have increased accordingly.

When he leaves public office entirely, either by resigning his TD’s seat or declining to defend it in the 2012 general election, he will also be entitled to a pension on that salary.

The payments are not affected by the circumstances of an office-holder’s departure from their post or by any subsequent events. Even former minister Ray Burke, who served a prison sentence for tax evasion, still receives an annual pension of more than €100,000.

Neither will these earnings be affected if the Taoiseach was to take up another job away from national politics, which means that ultimately he could be worth more financially outside the Dáil than in it.

Money will not be the only reminder of Mr Ahern’s time in the top post as former taoisigh are entitled to retain a ministerial car and Garda driver for his continuing public and private use.

Even if he were to take a post abroad, as one of his predecessors — John Bruton — has done, he would still be entitled to have a car and driver available to him during periods spent back in Ireland.

Some former taoisigh have also retained their 24-hour Garda watch on their homes and it is expected that Mr Ahern, given his high profile and involvement in sensitive international negotiations such as the north’s peace process, will continue to have a Garda presence, at least for a period after his resignation.

This would be subject to review, and the wishes of the taoiseach himself. The Department of Justice has said this was a security issue and was a matter for the gardaí, who do not discuss such matters publicly.