Fourth pay hike for Robert Watt will push his salary over €300k
Secretary General at the Department of Health Robert Watt is in line for a fourth pay increase later this year, which will push his salary above €300,000. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins
Top civil servant Robert Watt is in line for a fourth pay increase later this year, which will push his salary above €300,000.
The news comes just a day after the revealed that Mr Watt saw his pay increased for a third time on Monday, February 1, from €294,920 to just under €298,000.
Public Expenditure Minister Michael McGrath has established a review panel to examine the manner in which top civil servants are appointed and how their terms and conditions are reached. There is also likely to be another public sector pay deal agreed before October which could also impact Mr Watt’s pay.
As things stand under the current public sector pay deal, Building Momentum, Mr Watt will receive another 1% increase in October. It has also emerged that a planned restoration of pay for top civil servants including the judicary, secretaries general, and university presidents due for July 1 will also be re-examined in the new review commissioned by Mr McGrath.
News of the pay increases drew a scathing response from Government and opposition TDs who branded the salary bumps as “disgraceful” and “cynical”.
There is also considerable “frustration” within the Cabinet at Mr Watt’s prolonged refusal to clarify whether he was still waiving the €81,000 increase to his pay last year.
“It was far from ideal and it is not how we wanted to see things handled,” said one senior source.
Finance Committee chairman and Fianna Fáil TD John McGuinness described the pay increase as “truly outrageous” and said it is time to “stop this nonsense”.
Mr McGuinness said there is no reason why Mr Watt should be in receipt of further top-ups when a special case was made for him to be given the €81,000 increase last year.
Social Democrats leader Catherine Murphy said that far from being an isolated special case, the new salary for Mr Watt has created a new scale for top-tier civil servants which is now “embedded” in the system. She said such increases should not be happening as the rationale for the original €81,000 increase for Mr Watt was that this was an exceptional role.
As the controversy over his salary continues, Mr Watt and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly are in Dubai attending a conference on healthcare.
