New DAA chief to be paid €380,000 salary

The incoming head of airport operator DAA is set to earn €380,000, some €130,000 more than he did leading the Land Development Agency (LDA).John Coleman is leaving his role as LDA chief executive, which he has served in since its inception in 2019, where he earned a €250,000 annual salary. A spokeswoman for Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien confirmed on Wednesday that the approved salary for the DAA job is €380,000 a year. This outstrips the salary paid to Coleman’s predecessor at DAA, Kenny Jacobs, who earned €285,000 per year as part of a total package which came to €368,000 after the inclusion of pension contributions and other taxable benefits. [ Dublin Airport operator selects LDA boss John Coleman as new chief executiveOpens in new window ]Pay for the position was reassessed on foot of recommendations last year from the Senior Posts Remuneration Committee, an independent advisory body for roles in the public service and at commercial State bodies. READ MOREColeman agreed a five-year contract extension to remain at the Land Development Agency earlier this year, which followed years of back-and-forth over his contract. Records released under the Freedom of Information Act show that Minister for Housing James Browne lobbied his party colleague, Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers, over Coleman’s contract earlier this year.With the Department of Public Expenditure only offering a three-year extension, Browne told Chambers that an “abundance of caution” over contractual arrangements “is effectively being prioritised over the efficient delivery of Government housing policy”. In May, Chambers’ department recommended a €250,000 salary for Coleman, some €50,000 higher than had initially been offered, having agreed to a five-year contract extension “on an exceptional basis” in April. In 2024, LDA chairman Cormac O’Rourke wrote to then minister for housing Darragh O’Brien seeking a five-year extension to Coleman’s contract when it expired in 2026.O’Rourke said Coleman had “been approached by more than one company in the property/construction sector over the last six months” and argued that the Land Development Agency was “dependent for its success on its founding CEO [chief executive]”. [ DAA International to run exclusive Washington terminalOpens in new window ]At the time, the remuneration committee was reviewing senior level pay in State agencies. O’Rourke said the Land Development Agency board was happy to leave the issue of pay to this process, but shared the results of a consultant’s report, commissioned by the LDA board. This indicated that Coleman’s base salary was 61 per cent of that paid to chief executive’s in comparable companies. “This report led to a high degree of concern within the board of the LDA about how vulnerable it is the loss of its CEO,” he wrote, outlining the importance of Coleman to the Land Development Agency’s work. He argued that it was doubtful the agency would, if it needed to, attract a replacement from the private sector given the package available. O’Rourke wrote of Coleman’s commitment to the public sector and LDA, but noted that he had a young family, arguing “he cannot, nor should he be asked, to take the risk of being without an income in two years time”.