LABOUR TD and Leas-Cheann Comhairle of the Dáil Brendan Howlin has resigned from his teaching post, 25 years after he last taught at a Wexford national school.
Appointed to the Seanad as a taoiseach’s nominee in 1982 and a Dáil deputy since 1987, Mr Howlin said his decision to remain on leave from his teaching post for more than 20 years was his “legal entitlement”.
“I made the decision not to resign as my replacement is full-time and I don’t receive any remuneration, or anything, from it,” the Labour TD said. Mr Howlin had been in receipt of a payment equivalent to the difference between his teacher’s salary and the amount paid to his replacement. This payment amounted to €1,901 in 2006, according to Department of Education records.
However, Mr Howlin said the facility to renounce part-payment for his teaching position only became available two years ago at which point he immediately wrote to the Department of Education and renounced the relatively small annual payments.
The current arrangement, when a TD or Senator becomes a member of the Oireachtas, is that a replacement teacher is employed (in a temporary capacity) in his/her school for the duration of the absence. The teacher who becomes a member of the Oireachtas retains his/her full salary and allowances and the cost of the replacement including superannuation and employer’s PRSI is deducted from this salary.
Any balance of salary is then paid to the member of the Oireachtas. A number of other members have advised the relevant section of the department that they do not wish to receive any outstanding balance of salary. They include: Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin, Minister for Social and Family Affairs Mary Hanafin and Labour TDs Róisín Shortall and Tommy Broughan.
Under the current arrangement the member also retains the right to go back to his/her teaching post and continues to accrue incremental credit and to accumulate pensionable service under the teachers superannuation scheme.
According to figures supplied by the Oireachtas, Mr Howlin’s combined salary as TD and Leas-Cheann Comhairle is €157,938. However, he said he was the only politician in Co Wexford to take a voluntary 10 per cent pay cut in November last – a drop of almost €16,000.
According to the Department of Finance, Mr Howlin is receiving a ministerial pension as a former minister for the environment and minister for health. The pension was €20,793 in 2007. He said he would be subject to the new public service pension levy of nearly 10 per cent and said as such his salary would now be down by 20 per cent.
Defending his decision to accept a teacher’s pension, in addition to a TD’s and ministerial pension, Mr Howlin said he would not receive it until he was 60 – in seven years.
Minister for Education Batt O’Keeffe, a former lecturer, said he is considering a proposal to limit the length of time TDs can retain the option of returning to their previous teaching position.