Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 8 February 2022

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence

Review of Workplace Arrangements: Department of Foreign Affairs

Mr. Joe Hackett:

This was for a number of reasons. In the first instance, the former Secretary General was asked to make a donation of €2,000, as outlined in the report, as he was largely responsible. The other three individuals were at management board level and were, therefore, senior managers, and I took a decision that they had broad management responsibility for the failure that happened. This is again directly related to the breach that occurred. The other staff, who are largely more junior, were in a situation where the then Secretary General asked them to come together and I did not think that it would be proportionate to ask them to make a donation.