€4.7m in bonuses paid to civil and public servants

BONUS and performance payments of almost €5 million were paid to civil and public servants last year.

Figures compiled by the Irish Examiner show that the extra pay ranged from an average of less than €100 per recipient in the Central Statistics Office to a €16,000 performance-related award to Public Appointments Service (PAS) chief executive Bryan Andrews.

PAS said the payment related to 2007 and was sanctioned by the Department of Finance under a scheme open to civil servants at assistant secretary general or equivalent grades.