Advisers on €80k entitled to €12k pay rise

A number of special advisers hired by ministers on salaries in excess of €80,000 will be entitled to a series of pay increases over the Government’s lifetime.

Should the Fine Gael-Labour coalition run its full five-year term, their salaries will be up to €12,000 higher by the end of it. They stand to receive the pay increases under the public service increments system, whereby public servants on certain grades receive annual hikes as they progress up their respective pay scales.

The Government has repeatedly defended its intention to continue paying increments, saying the lowest-paid public servants would be worst affected if they were scrapped.