Just four ex-ministers refuse to take payout

Only four out of 43 former government ministers have declined to accept an allowance, saving taxpayers over €250,000, new figures reveal.

The severance payment, introduced by Fianna Fáil during the boom, has cost the State almost €1.6m over the past two years.

Figures released by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform reveal that 39 former ministers, ministers of state, and senior officeholders, including a former attorney general and a leader of the Seanad, had claimed severance payments totalling €1,574,132 since 2011.