I propose to take Questions Nos. 579, 580 and 584 together.
Fáilte Ireland advised that the recruitment process for a new chief executive officer is being carried out by an executive search company, AMROP. The appointment is not yet completed. My Department is currently in discussions with Fáilte Ireland to agree the terms and conditions for this post.
The legislation which governs Fáilte Ireland, the National Tourism Development Authority Act 2003, provides that the Chief Executive shall be appointed by the Authority with the consent of the Minister (section 31(3)). There is no onus on Fáilte Ireland to engage the Public Appointments Service for this recruitment process. The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform stipulated that the appointment be made by open competition.
The contract for the current chief executive officer expires on the 31st December 2016. The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the Chief Executive's remuneration package is available in the Annual Report and Accounts of the Agency. As the 2015 Report is not yet published however I can confirm that the chief executive officer's salary in 2015 was €150,010. No bonus is payable. The chief executive officer is a member of the unfunded (formerly CERT) contributory pension and death benefits plan. I do not have the details of the pension benefits to hand and will forward the details to the Deputy as soon as possible.