Top civil servant Robert Watt confirms he has taken €81k pay rise

Secretary general at the Department of Health Robert Watt received a further rise of nearly €3,000 last October, meaning his salary now stands at €294,920. File picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

The top civil servant in the Department of Health has confirmed he has taken an €81,000 pay increase.

Robert Watt had come under pressure in recent days to clarify whether he is now taking the pay hike which was controversially awarded to him when he was appointed secretary-general in the Department of Health last year.