Cowen Again Defends FAS Golden Handshake

The Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, has again defended the 'golden handshake' claimed by former FAS director general Rody Molloy last year.

Yesterday internal memos have revealed the €1.1m pension top-up awarded to Mr Molloy breached key Department of Finance guidelines, with at least three officials from the department reportedly warned the deal fell outside the guidelines.

Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny raised the matter in the Dáil this morning, but Mr Cowen continued to stand over the actions of his Government in awarding the massive pay-off to Mr Molloy.

He said the severance arrangement was approved under the provisions of the Labour Services Act 1987 and that was the legislative basis upon which the decisions were taken.

Meanwhile, other payouts to Government department chiefs have infuriated opposition parties.

This morning, Labour's Spokesperson on Health Jan O'Sullivan said that even the notion that the Government were even "countenancing" handing over a bonus payment of €70,000 to HSE Chief Brendan Drumm would shock most fair-minded people.

Ms Sullivan said: "This bonus covers the year 2007, a year in which the HSE was beset by controversies over cancer misdiagnosis, outrageous waiting lists, critical shortages of paediatric intensive care beds, delays in the roll-out of cervical cancer screening, and problems with hospital hygiene, to name but a few.

"Now we are to respond to these failures, not by bringing the HSE management to book, but by giving the head of the organisation a pat on the back worth almost twice the average industrial wage."

(DW/BMcC)