MPs have reacted angrily to decisions by insurance group Achmea and car lease group Leaseplan to increase top executive salaries despite not having repaid government bail-out guarantees.

Both firms are banned from giving bonuses until the money has been paid back. Instead, Achmea is raising the salary of its management board members by 19% and Leaseplan by 16%. Salaries have also gone up at other state-supported companies, RTL news reports.

This is a ‘sad signal at the wrong time’ CDA parliamentarian Eddy van Hijum told the broadcaster.

Guarantees

Leaseplan, which has a banking licence, was given a €6.5bn loan guarantee by the state in 2008 and still owes some €1.8bn. Including pension payments and other secondary benefits, the remuneration cost of the three-strong board was €2.4m, up 29% on a year ago, according to the company’s annual report.

Achmea took out a €2bn state guarantee for its mortgage arm in 2009.

Earlier it emerged nationalised insurance group ASR had increased the salaries of its financial and operational directors by 16% but not that of its chairman.

In addition, investment bank NIBC, which also took out loan guarantees in 2008 and 2009, increased the salary of its chairman by 7% and three other board members by 11% last year.

Nationalised banks ABN Amro and SNS, plus ING which still owes the government bail-out cash, have not yet published their executive pay rates for last year.