Public outcry has led to a promise that politicians salaries will be reduced and bonuses recently paid to ministers given to charity in Poland.

Lucrative golden handshakes for retiring ministers will be axed under proposals to be signed off on by the Cabinet in September.

In these dire times, though chauffeur-driven ministerial Mercs may have gone, a political career is still characterised by juicy perks and fat pensions, a scenario which sharply underscores the glaring inequalities of life in Ireland today.