Pressure is growing on the Office of Public Works (OPW) to fully explain why it lets out State-owned properties to retired civil servants, with two Oireachtas committees now set to investigate the issue, writes Brian Mahon.

The Irish Mail on Sunday last weekend exclusively revealed that current civil servants are living effectively rent-free under a sweetheart deal in secret "ghost houses" in the Phoenix Park.

There are six residential properties in the Phoenix Park that are managed by the OPW but do not exist on any publicly available official asset register.

The OPW has refused to confirm what rents the current and former State employee are paying but overall figures released in 2021 suggest the average rent could be as low as €135 a month.

Aidan Farrelly, a Social Democrats TD who sits on Public Accounts Committee (PAC), confirmed that he had written to the chair of the committee seeking answers on the matter.

Farrelly said: "It would be my hope that we write to the OPW with a series of questions about these properties."

The Public Expenditure Minister, Jack Chambers, yesterday also confirmed that Kevin 'Boxer' Moran would appear before the Finance Committee next week on the matter. Chambers is now the third Government figure this week to not have any update on the matter this week.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin this week said he was "unaware" of the reports when he was questioned on the matter by the Irish Daily Mail.

Housing Minister James Browne was asked about the properties yesterday morning but said he had only just become aware of the story.

Parliamentary questions in 2017 indicate that Moran is aware of the issue as he previously served as a minister for state. He said: "My officials have advised that there are occasions where the properties remain occupied by retired staff and widowed spouses on compassionate grounds.

"Decisions in relation to extended occupancy are made on a case-by-case basis. Duration of occupancy varies from a minimum of three years to life."

Pensions silence a 'surprise'

Chambers has said he was "surprised" that senior civil servants who were overpaid in their pensions didn't engage with Revenue about the matter.

Earlier this month, Chambers revealed that 30 senior civil servants had their pension calculations wrongly managed.

The Minister confirmed yesterday that the issue arose after Revenue raised queries with the National Shared Services Office (NSSO), the body responsible for administering the payments of salaries and pensions to civil servants.

Following a query from Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty, Chambers replied: "People would have known, or may have known, that they have a liability, and I'm surprised that, in their own volition, they didn't interact on what their liability may have been."

(Pic: Getty Images)