SINN Féin senator Joanne Collins called on Limerick Ministers Patrick O’Donovan and Niall Collins to declare whether they were among the 10 ministers still not in a repayment plan for salary overpayments.
Senator Collins made her comments after revelations that 10 serving ministers have still not repaid substantial sums of taxpayers’ money more than seven months after overpayments were identified.
“10 serving Government ministers – people earning over €180,000 – have still not repaid money they were never entitled to. Seven months have passed and not a single red cent has been returned by those ministers,” Senator Collins told the Limerick Post.
“The failure to return the money only came to light when Pearse Doherty questioned Minister Jack Chambers at the Finance Committee.”
The Sinn Féin senator hit out that “not only have these ministers paid nothing back, so far none of them have even put their hands up to admit they are one of the 10”.
“That is why I am calling on Ministers O’Donovan and Collins to declare whether or not they are one of them. The people of Limerick County deserve to know.
“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.
“These ministers need to come clean. The public deserves the full picture, and a definitive date by which every last cent will be paid back. Nothing less will do,” she concluded.
In response to Senator Collins query, this reporter was informed by Minister Niall Collins that he is not one of the 10 ministers referenced. There was no response from Minister Patrick O’Donovan at the time of going to print.