“Their Right To Privacy Now Trumps Public Interest”

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From top: Leinster House; Ken Foxe

Yesterday.

In The Business Post.

Rachel Lavin reported:

The details of lump sum payments and pensions made to TDs and senators leaving office will no longer be made public, an internal review by the Oireachtas has decided.

The move comes after the Information Commissioner ruled in April that the public release of the pensions paid to former taoisigh, presidents and ministers would involve a “significant breach” of their privacy.

The Oireachtas review has now extended this interpretation to outgoing TDs and senators, concluding that their right to privacy now trumps the public interest when it comes to publishing the details of their termination and pension pay, even though the money involved comes from public funds.

The decision means “hundreds of thousands of euros in termination pay will now go unscrutinised” Ken Foxe, a journalist and Freedom of Information (FOI) campaigner said.

Politicians’ golden handshakes no longer subject to FOI (Sunday Business Post, Rachel Lavin)

Previously7: Who Took This Decision?

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3 thoughts on ““Their Right To Privacy Now Trumps Public Interest”

  1. Cian

    This is really bizarre.

    These details should be freely available -i.e. actively published; not wait for a FOI request.

    The calculations are available (e.g. how much you get for each year, etc..) so if you had the time you could work out how much, say, Maria Bailey (ex) TD would get based on her 4 years as TD, 3 years 3 months as a Chair.

  2. Termagant

    But it’s not a private matter. That money is coming out of the public purse, it’s a definitively public matter.

  3. Gavin

    We’ll be riding the state for every penny we can fleece, and no! we wont be telling ya what that comes to…so get back to whatever peasents do

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