Vincent Crowley, the former chief executive of Independent News & Media, was paid more than €1 million by the company last year, with the sum including a termination payment of €749,000.

Mr Crowley was paid €261,000 for his services as chief executive, a role from which he stepped down in May 2014. He continued to work as a consultant for INM throughout most of last year, during a period in which the media group searched for his replacement.

His total remuneration of €1,010,000 compares to a salary and bonus of €999,000 in 2013.

The details of the payments were published in INM's annual report for 2014, which also shows that its chairman, Leslie Buckley, was paid €158,000 last year, the same amount as in 2013.

Jerome Kennedy, the senior independent director, was paid €90,000, while the other seven non-executive directors were paid between €45,000 and €70,000. This brought the total payments to non-executive directors to €643,000, down from €688,000 in 2013.

The company also made payments of about €555,000 “in respect of the entitlements” of former executive directors.

The annual report does not give any details of the pay for new chief executive Robert Pitt or new group chief financial officer Ryan Preston, who both took up their positions in October 2014.