Lenihan dismisses PAC request for pension review

FINANCE Minister Brian Lenihan has dismissed arequest from a powerful Dáil committee to specifically review lucrative top-up pension deals for senior public servants.

In a letter to the Public Accounts’ Committee (PAC) Mr Lenihan said he did not support its call to draw up new guidelines governing arrangements for retiring chief executives of semi-state bodies.

These controversial deals, sanctioned by successive ministers, have seen chief executives treated as if they had worked for more years than they had, just to qualify for higher pensions.