€53k salary bump for new horse racing chief 'proportionate'

Horse Racing Ireland CEO Suzanne Eade presents Champion Jockey Colin Keane with his HRI Flat award last October. The starting salary bump for the CEO post doesn't represent an increase, says the Government. Picture: Healy Racing

A decision to raise the starting salary for the new chief executive of Horse Racing Ireland by €53,000 does not “represent an increase” on the terms for the position, according to the Government.

In a note for the Public Accounts Committee, the Department of Public Expenditure said that since the previous CEO had been in his position for 20 years, his salary had predated cuts imposed during the recession.