Follow US lead and cap top salaries -- Gormley
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IRELAND should follow the lead of the US and cap the salaries of senior executives in the country's banks, Green Party leader John Gormley said yesterday.
President Barack Obama has put a pay limit of $500,000 on Wall Street personnel whose banks are being bailed out by the US taxpayer.
And speaking in Limerick yesterday, the environment minister said we should do likewise as the country was now in the "worst economic crisis" it has ever seen.
"The sort of salaries that people are on is not acceptable; the salaries have to be capped. We have to scrap the bonuses and we have done that. There is a report coming back and if we are not happy with that particular report, the Government will move accordingly," he said.
"I agree with the way Obama has done this, it should be capped at that ($500,000 or €387,953), that is my own view. I hope we can get some semblance of reality here, because I think that people who are earning those salaries are frankly not living in the real world."
Mr Gormley said the Taoiseach and government ministers were "well within their ground" to criticise the senior personnel of Irish banks who received multiples of their salaries with "less responsibility" than those in charge of the country.
Controversy
Regarding the Irish Life & Permanent controversy, Mr Gormley said the matter was being dealt with by Finance Minister Brian Lenihan.
"I predicted yesterday (Thursday) that there would be resignations and we now have resignations of key individuals within that organisation," he said. "I understand a statement was issued, the Finance Minister is meeting with the chairman to discuss that. He will take up those discussions and we will take it from there."
He said on a personal level that he hoped action was taken.
"It's a matter for the Finance Minister. I certainly don't want to preempt those discussions in any way. I think it is fair to say there is widespread anger out there at what has occurred. What has occurred is simply quite unacceptable," he added.
Meanwhile, Fine Gael said last night the resignation of IL&P chief executive Denis Casey was welcome but not sufficient.
Party communications spokesman Simon Coveney asked if the Government or the Financial Regulator actually approved the transaction between IL&P and Anglo.
Credible
Mr Coveney said Mr Lenihan's explanation as to his involvement was not credible, and serious questions have arisen for the Taoiseach and the Finance Minister.
"Did the Government or its Regulator approve the IL&P/Anglo transfer of €7bn?" he said.
But the Department of Finance flatly rejected the accusation. "There is no truth to it whatsoever?" a spokesman said.
According to government sources, Mr Coveney's questions relate to the role of the Financial Regulator and have nothing to do with the department.
But Fine Gael still wants to put its questions into the public domain and get a response from the minister.
Mr Coveney says "rumours abound" that the Government's regulator was fully aware of the transactions between Anglo and IL&P to falsify deposit holdings in Anglo at the time that it happened.
"If this is the case, it is not credible that the Government would not have been aware of the transaction. The announcement of Mr Casey's resignation is welcome, but it alone will not restore trust in the integrity of our financial system.
"That collapse of trust is not solely linked to bankers; it also includes a loss of trust in the ability of Government to manage this crisis," he said.
- Barry Duggan and Fionnan Sheahan
