Harney defends €70,000 bonus for ‘fantastic’ HSE chief

HEALTH Minister Mary Harney defended the controversial €70,000 bonus paid to the HSE chief executive Brendan Drumm, saying he “does a fantastic job”.

News of the performance-related bonus emerged on the same day it was reported that children with arthritis are waiting 13 months to see the country’s only specialists, and that there’s a shortage of 120 cystic fibrosis staff nationwide.

Defending the bonus, which is on top of Mr Drumm’s €371,000 salary, Ms Harney said that when the job was first advertised “it wasn’t easy to find somebody of his level”.