Transport Minister Leo Varadkar says he is very dissatisfied that the board of the Dublin Airport Authority has made a provision for a substantial performance-related payment of over €106,000 to chief executive Declan Collier for last year.
A spokesman for the Minister said that while he was aware that the actual payment of the award has been deferred, it was the Government's clear policy that no performance-related payments should be made in respect of 2010. He said all Government agencies were expected to comply with this.
The DAA's annual report, published today, shows that Mr Collier was awarded performance-related bonuses of more than €106,000 last year, though these will not be paid until the end of his contract.
This came as the DAA reported a return to profit last year, helped by cost-cutting measures, after losing more than €13m in 2009.
Though Mr Collier took a 12% cut in his basic salary to just under €308,500, his total package was worth €612,500, up from just over €568,000 in 2009.
The DAA said only €21,900 in performance-related bonuses was actually paid to Mr Collier last year, with the rest deferred to reflect current Government policy that bonuses should not be paid at this time.
The annual report showed that the DAA recorded profits of €33.1m for 2010 despite the impact of volcanic ash and extreme weather conditions on passenger numbers.
The authority said the business environment remained very tough for the company last year, due to the impact of the economic slowdown, weak business and consumer spending as well as a reduction in airline services.
Turnover for the year rose by 2% to €558m as a result of increased airport charges and higher sales revenues at its overseas operations.
The Icelandic ash cloud and the snow and ice conditions during the winter months reduced passenger numbers by up to a million across the authority's three airports - Dublin, Cork and Shannon. This resulted in a €13m charge to the company's figures.
The DAA said its passenger numbers in Dublin, Shannon and Cork fell by 13% to 22.6 million last year. Passenger numbers at Dublin fell by 10% to 18.4 million, while the Cork figures were down 12% to 2.4 million. Passenger numbers at Shannon airport slumped by 37% to 1.8 million mainly as a result of Ryanair's withdrawing a number of routes from the airport.
The company said the improved profits for 2010 were mainly due to a significant reduction in costs. It had reported a loss of €13.3m in 2009. It said its cost recovery programme will deliver annual savings in labour costs alone of almost €40m.
The authority opened Terminal 2 at Dublin airport in November and over the next three months, the phased transfer of airlines using the new operations was completed. DAA chief executive Declan Collier said that over 40% of Dublin airport's passengers are now using Terminal 2.
The DAA said that profits at its subsidiary Aer Rianta International rose by 40% to €18.8m compared to €13.4m in 2009.
Varadkar 'met State agencies on bonuses'
Transport Minister Leo Varadkar's spokesman said that, shortly after he took office, the Minister met the chairpersons and CEOs of all agencies. He had told them the Government intended to consider the issue of performance-related pay for CEOs, and that in the meantime such payments should not be made.
He noted that while neither the chairman nor the CEO of the DAA had attended, a company representative had been present.
The spokesperson said the Minister strongly reiterated this position in a subsequent meeting with the former DAA chairman David Dilger and it was also clearly articulated by the department's representative on the Board's remuneration committee. It is understood the minister hopes to be in a position to appoint a new DAA chairman in the next few weeks.
Earlier this week, Public Expenditure & Reform Minister Brendan Howlin announced plans to cap the salaries of future chief executives of commercial state companies. The salary of any new DAA chief executive is to be just under €219,671..
