EXPENSES ENTITLEMENTS granted to former taoisigh are to be examined as part of the Government’s review of expenditure, the Department of the Taoiseach said yesterday.
It was commenting after it emerged former taoiseach Bertie Ahern had claimed just over €264,000 in expenses since he stepped down in May 2008, including €7,500 on mobile phone bills.
Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee Fianna Fáil deputy John McGuinness also called for a review, and said outgoing taoisigh should only be allowed one secretarial assistant.
Under the current expenses regime a former taoiseach may employ two secretarial assistants for up to five years after leaving office and one indefinitely after that. The maximum that may be paid to an assistant is €55,415 a year.
Ex-taoisigh are also entitled to claim for mobile phone use and may use a State car for official engagements only.
In 2009 Mr Ahern claimed almost €115,000 in expenses. Last year he claimed almost €107,000 and from January to July this year, he claimed almost €43,000, according to figures from the Department of the Taoiseach.
Mr Ahern’s claims were more than twice the €115,277 former taoiseach Albert Reynolds claimed for the same 2½-year period and almost 10 times as much as the figure claimed by former taoiseach John Bruton.
Mr Bruton claimed no expenses at all in 2009, according to the department’s figures, but claimed €13,310 in 2010 and €13,652 for the first six months of this year.
Former taoiseach Brian Cowen has also begun collecting expenses under the scheme. He claimed more than €15,000 since he left office in March this year.
Mr Ahern, who has a pension of €150,000 a year, was also ahead of his peers in claiming mobile phone expenses. From January to the end of June this year he claimed more than €1,500, compared with €963 for Mr Bruton and €234 for Mr Reynolds.
Mr Cowen claimed €262 for his mobile phone from the time he left office to the end of June.
Mr Ahern’s comparatively high phone bills could be partly explained by overseas trips made in his capacity as a lecturer registered with the Washington Speakers Bureau.
In 2009 alone he travelled to Honduras, Nigeria, Dubai and New York to deliver lectures where he earned in excess of €27,500 per appearance.
Yesterday, the Department of the Taoiseach confirmed expenses for ex-taoisigh were up for consideration in the context of the Government’s “comprehensive review of expenditure”.
“We would like to emphasis that everything is on the table,” a spokeswoman said.
She pointed out that ex-taoisigh have some duties they must carry out after they leave office, including their role in the Council of State, which advises the President on the constitutionality of proposed legislation. They also have to deal with media inquiries and political researchers, she said.
Mr McGuinness said ex-taoisigh should be allowed only one secretarial assistant and for a shorter period of time.
