Kenny ‘demeaning his office’ over call for pension refusals

Fianna Fáil has accused Taoiseach Enda Kenny of “demeaning his office” by calling on Bertie Ahern and Brian Cowen to refuse big pension increases.

With the two former taosigh, who both took €134,000 in pension payments last year, being questioned by an Oireachtas probe on their roles in the boom and bust financial crash, Fianna Fáil insisted the onus should not be on them to hand back planned increases of some €2,000 a year.

The row came as Mr Kenny warned it was up to the former politicians to act in the best interest of a “fragile” economy after he told angry Fine Gael backbenchers he would not block the payments with new legislation.