Staff who lost out in reshuffle net €600k

Over €600,000 in severance, redundancy, or other payments was given to at least 15 people who lost their jobs as advisers or other roles with former ministers, after last year’s reshuffle.

They include average payments of almost €60,000 each to seven former ministerial staff by the Department of Foreign Affairs in 2014. Eamon Gilmore left his role as foreign affairs minister when he stepped aside as Labour leader and tánaiste in July 2014.

According to the dep-artment’s 2014 accounts published by the Comptroller and Auditor General this week, it paid a total of €417,787 in severance payments.