Annual pensions of Kenny and Noonan soar when years in cabinet factored in

Enda Kenny. Picture: Arthur Carron

Philip Ryan

Former Taoiseach Enda Kenny will be paid an estimated €100,000 annual pension after stepping down from public life.

Mr Kenny's full yearly payment takes into account his years serving as a minister and Taoiseach and includes his €46,800 Dáil pension.

It would cost €3.2m to buy the same pension from a private company.

The lump sum Mr Kenny is entitled to after 42 years as a TD could be as much as €140,399. Similarly, former Finance Minister Michael Noonan is entitled to an estimated €88,527 annual pension when his ministerial years are taken into account.

Mr Noonan's entire pension would be worth an estimated €2.7m from a private pension company. Mr Noonan announced his retirement after Mr Kenny stepped down to make way for Leo Varadkar to lead Fine Gael.

Former Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett is set to receive a €93,084 pension when his years serving as the chair of the Dáil are calculated.

Mr Barrett's pension would also be worth an estimated €2.7m if he was to seek a similar package on the private market.

The pension figures were compiled by financial analyst Karl Deeter using publicly available information about the TDs and their entitlements. The figures take into account each deputy's age, Dáil service and offices they may have held during their careers.

Mr Deeter used an industry-standard pensions-quoting engine to get annuity rates for the political worth of each TD's pension if they were bought from a private company. The same methodology was used for the 'Sunday Independent' Political Rich List. Each TD was emailed the estimated details of their pension entitlements and given an opportunity to respond.