Ministers confirm they have no outstanding issues over pension overpayments

Meath's government Ministers have no outstanding issues regarding overpayments following errors around their pension deductions.

Both Ministers Helen McEntee and Thomas Byrne confirmed there were no outstanding issues following calls by Deputy Darren O'Rourke calling on them to declare whether they were among the ministers still not in a repayment plan for salary overpayment.

A spokesperson for Minister McEntee said: "An overpayment arising from an administrative error was identified by the National Shared Services Office (NSSO) and notified to Minister McEntee. As soon as the issue came to light, Minister McEntee engaged with the NSSO and has put a repayment plan in place.

"A spokesperson for Minister Byrne said “There is no outstanding issue between Minister Byrne and NSSO”. It emerged last week that a number of government ministers still had not a repayment plan in place after they were overpaid following errors around their pension deductions.

Public Expenditure Minister Jack Chambers that there were still ten ministers who must put a plan in place to repay the money after overpayments came to light last year. The Minister said that another 24 ministers have either received refunds or they have entered into repayment plans.

Deputy O'Rourke said: “Ten serving government ministers - people earning over €180,000 - have still not repaid money they were never entitled to.

“Ordinary workers and pensioners would not be shown anything like this indulgence.

“This is taxpayers’ money. It is not government money and it is not ministers’ money. It belongs to the people.“The idea that senior ministers have been allowed to sit on it for seven months is outrageous and unacceptable.

"The public deserves the full picture, and a definitive date by which every last cent will be paid back. Nothing less will do,” he said.