claimed Mr Coveney was using a State car and Garda drivers “without permission” because no Cabinet decision was made to approve the move. He said a Minister going around in a Garda car “costing €200,000 a year without permission” raised “serious questions”.Before he became tánaiste Mr Coveney used his own car with civilian drivers.
Given the frequency of his travel to the North, it was argued that the practice of using his own car and swapping cars at the Border would not result in significant savings. Moreover, it would also have security implications, said the sources. Separately, on Wednesday a review by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection determined that 85 out of the 2,500 who had their pandemic unemployment payment stopped for leaving the country may in fact be entitled to it. The department said it would be contacting each of these individuals in the coming days.
The Government U-turned and said it would continue the payment for those who travelled to green list countries. Several sources insisted that Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys’ decision to change tack had been communicated to the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, beforehand. However, the fallout from the controversy continued.
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