Semi-state salaries - Profligacy must be tackled

This country has been on the front pages of newspapers throughout the world for the past week, due to the EU/IMF bailout.

Nobody should really be surprised we are in such a mess when one considers the salaries being paid to senior members of our semi-state bodies that are highlighted on the front page of today’s Irish Examiner.

The graphic is a breathtaking reminder of the colossal insensitivity of the Government in announcing it would be cutting the minimum wage by 12% in line with the National Recovery Plan in order to remove a “barrier to employment creation” and improve the competitiveness of the Irish economy. Yet there was no mention of any cuts to the wages or pensions of some of the highest paid people in the public and semi-state sectors.