€50k expenses paid to science agency directors

Almost €50,000 was paid in expenses to four directors of the country’s science funding agency to attend board and committee meetings last year.

Three of the four directors are based in the United States and another in the UK, but the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) annual report says that two of them waived the fee of nearly €12,000 to which they were entitled as board members.

The payments are revealed in a report which also highlights Ireland’s improved performance compared to other countries for the overall quality of scientific research.