Sacked junior ministers 'to get €53,000 golden handshake'
The five junior ministers whose jobs are being axed by the Taoiseach are reportedly set to get a generous golden parachute.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen is set to reduce the number of junior ministers from 20 to 15 tomorrow as part of measures to reduce public spending.
The move is likely to save the taxpayer at least €2.5m per year.
However, reports this morning say each of the five ministers losing their jobs will get payments of up to €53,000 to compensate them for loss of earnings.
The revelations follows the news that the plan to abolish long-service payments to TDs and Senators will only be applied in the future and will not affect politicians who already receive such payments.
