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Robert Watt has been appointed as secretary general of the Department of Health but is to waive a salary increase of more than €80,000 that comes with the job until the economy begins to recover from the effects of the pandmeic. 
The Cabinet approved the appointment of the former Department of Public Expenditure and Reform secretary general at its meeting on Tuesday.
He had been appointed to the health job on an interim basis in January while a recruitment process to find a permanent candidate took place.
Controversy arose when it was announced that the next person to take the job would receive an increased salary of €292,000 – more than any other civil servant. It amounts to a pay increase of more than €80,000 for Mr Watt.
The Department of Health on Tuesday issued a statement confirming Mr Watt’s appointment in which he said: “I was delighted to be asked to take on the role of interim Secretary General in the Department of Health earlier this year. 
“An open TLAC (Top Level Appointments Committee) competition was held and I am pleased to be asked to take on this role on a permanent basis following the Government meeting today. 
“The proposed salary for this role is higher than my current salary. 
Economic conditions
“I don’t think it is appropriate to take such an increase in pay given the current difficult economic conditions the country faces.
“It had always been my intention that, if I were to be appointed to this role, I would waive this increase until the economy begins to recover and unemployment falls. 
“I am looking forward to continuing to work with my colleagues in the Department of Health on the many challenges we face.”
Minister fort Health Stephen Donnelly said he was “pleased” to see Mr Watt “taking on this really important role”. 
“The department continues to work through the challenge of Covid-19, is leading on the vaccination programme and the implementation of Sláintecare. Robert brings a wealth of experience to this role and I looking forward to working with him in the time ahead.”
Pay review
The Oireachtas Committee on Finance and the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) commenced a review of pay of senior officials in the public sector in the wake of the controversy over the pay rise for the Department of Health job.  
Minister for Public Expenditure Michael McGrath has previously said that Mr Watt had “no input” in sanctioning the salary for the health post.
The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform has said the new salary is “deemed to be commensurate with the scale of the responsibilities, including the vaccine rollout in the immediate term and the challenges of implementing the Government’s ambition for the rollout of Sláintecare and the budget of €21 billion for health”.
The PAC had called for the recruitment process to be halted pending a review of the decision to increase the salary for the role.