Shatter under pressure to waive €70,000 severance

Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar has declined to say whether or not former minister for justice Alan Shatter should waive his €70,000 severance fee, saying: “I don’t want to kick a man when he’s down”.

Mr Shatter is entitled to accept the money because his resignation pre-dated the signing of commencement orders for legislation abolishing such payments.

Mr Varadkar this morning revealed the Government’s plan was to have it signed into law before the upcoming reshuffle.

He said it would be better for Mr Shatter to sort out the matter before the elections took place, but stressed it should be his decision. He said Mr Shatter was legally entitled to the money but given that he had voted for the legislation to abolish severence payments it would “stand to reason” he wouldn’t accept it.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny has already urged Mr Shatter to waive his entitlement to the severance pay.

Mr Varadkar, speaking to Morning Ireland on RTÉ Radio One, said some people in Fine Gael believed he had a role in Mr Shatter’s resignation. “I don’t believe that’s the case but some people do think that.”

Mr Varadkar reignited the Garda whistleblower controversy in March when he described Sgt Maurice McCabe and former garda John Wilson as “distinguished”.

He said Mr Shatter had to resign in very difficult circumstances after working very hard for a very long time to become minister for justice.

“I’m just not the kind of person who wants to throw sand in a man’s face.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny said his recommendation to Mr Shatter would be that he should not accept his “technical entitlement” to the payment but noted that he could not force anyone on the matter.

“The position is that the Govenrment of which he was a member, of which I am a member myself, mader it perfectly clear that we wanted these ended,” Mr Kenny told reporters in Dublin at a Fine Gael campaign event this morning.

“Clearly, former Minister Shatter – and I don’t want to be doing this over the airwaves obviously – there’s a technical entitlement in law, because it wasn’t signed before Alan resigned,” the Taoiseeach added.

“The point is that this Government made a number of decisions in this area and the Government decided to abolish all severance pay for all ministers. The Government as a unit decided that.

“The legislation was prepared, was approved by Government, was put through the House and signed into law. For whatever technical reason it wasn’t signed until last week.”