Sinn Féin TD for Meath East, Darren O’Rourke, has said that Minister Helen McEntee must declare whether she is one of 10 ministers still not in a repayment plan for salary overpayment. Deputy O’Rourke made his comments after revelations that 10 serving ministers have still not repaid substantial sums of taxpayers’ money more than seven months after overpayments were identified.
Teachta O’Rourke said: “Ten 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. The failure to return the money only came to light when Pearse Doherty questioned Minister Jack Chambers at the Finance Committee this week. 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 Minister McEntee to declare whether or not she is one of them. The people of Meath East 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.”
