Yesterday we raised with the Taoiseach the issue of the very large pensions being paid to former bankers who brought the State to the brink of ruin. The Taoiseach ran for cover and hid behind the Constitution, property rights and the advice of the Attorney General which, of course, he will not publish. I want to raise a related issue with the Tánaiste. Six top executives in the former Anglo Irish Bank earn in excess of €0.5 million per annum which, of course, makes an absolute mockery of the so-called cap on bankers' salaries. This bank was bailed out by Fianna Fáil, is presided over by a former Fine Gael leader, thumbs its nose at the Irish people and all the while the Labour Party sings-----

And guaranteed by Sinn Féin.

Please allow the Deputy to speak without interruption.

As the budget draws closer many people, including students, are raging that the very people who brought the State to its knees continue to enjoy exorbitant pay and pensions.

I understand from a response to a parliamentary question that the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, asked Mr. Alan Dukes in April last to reduce the pay of these bankers and that Mr. Dukes told him to get lost. Does the Tánaiste think it is acceptable for a former Fine Gael leader who, by the way, continues to claim a large ministerial pension and who presides over this bankrupt toxic banks to tell the Government to get lost?

I do not think it is acceptable that former executives of Anglo Irish Bank or any of the other banks which had to be bailed out with Irish taxpayers' money should be on pensions of more than €0.5 million per year nor do I, the Taoiseach and the Minister for Finance think it is acceptable that executives of the current IBRC should be on salaries of that scale. That is why the Minister for Finance told the IBRC in April that those salaries should be reduced and why he has undertaken a full review of the salaries being paid. The Deputy knows that because the Minister wrote to the finance spokespersons of the political parties in this House in the summer informing them that review was underway. In recent weeks, he secured the assistance of financial advisers from Mercer to work through the various options as to how this will be dealt with. This is not acceptable to the Government and the people of this country who have had to suffer the consequences of what these banks did and the way in which they were managed. It is not acceptable that former executives of these banks are on these kinds of pensions nor is it acceptable that current executives of IBRC, in particular, are on these levels of salaries. It is being reviewed by the Minister for Finance and it is very much in hand by the Government.

It is equally unacceptable that the Government continues to take a hands off approach in all of these matters. It is very quick to move in and make the cuts where it sees what it would possibly consider a soft target. However, I cannot help but be struck by the fact that it steps very gently around the senior banking executives. It is not acceptable for a former Minister and former Fine Gael leader, who is involved in this bank, to tell the Minister for Finance to get lost because that is what happened when that conversation took place in April. They will not take salary cuts voluntarily. The hands off and the gently, gently approach, which the Government reserves for the high flyers in banking, will not work. It is not acceptable either-----

Could we have your question?

-----that a former leader of the Tánaiste's party and now allegedly a public watchdog in AIB - I refer to Dick Spring-----

Are you looking at me?

Would the Deputy put a supplementary question?

I refer to Dick Spring. He was in place when all of these gold plated pension arrangements were put in place.

Deputy, will you please listen to the Chair? You are over time so please put your question.

The Tánaiste says all of this is unacceptable and abhorrent. I will take him at his word.

Will you put your question?

A review and kicking the can down the road will not cut it. What will the Tánaiste do now, in advance of December's budget, to put these matters right and stop the practice of these executives being on salaries of over half a million euro? That must stop.

I will not ask the Deputy again.

The people of this State at least deserve that.

This Government did not have to wait for either Fianna Fáil, which is responsible for the bank bailout, or Sinn Féin, which supported the bailout, to raise this issue in the House.

We are already dealing with this issue. It is not acceptable to the Government or the people of this country that these levels of either pensions or salaries should continue to be paid. That is why the Minister for Finance has already been in discussion with the IBRC about this. He has already undertaken the review. He wrote to both the Sinn Féin and Fianna Fáil spokespersons to inform them of the action-----

He did not write to ours.

-----he was taking on that last summer. He is continuing with that work. I assure the Deputy that this issue is being, and will be, dealt with.

We inherited a problem here. The problem is that Fianna Fáil approved contracts for those people and we have to find a way of addressing that issue. It is not insignificant that although the parliamentary question was asked by the Fianna Fáil spokesperson on finance yesterday, the leader of Fianna Fáil did not run with it during Leaders' Questions today. He is embarrassed about it.