SIX former councillors who left Fermanagh District Council ahead of its amalgamation with Omagh District Council have received more than £95,000 in severance packages between them.

The figures obtained by Detail Data, a collaboration between investigative journalism website The Detail and the Northern Ireland Council for Voluntary Action, show that former DUP Councillor Bert Johnston alone received £31,200 after 38 years’ service.

Mr. Johnston has been enjoying life away from politics by spending time in his Ballinamallard garden ahead of this year’s Ulster in Bloom contest and has recently built a bird table.

“I haven’t spent £30,000 on a bird table. I don’t have much wit, but I have enough wit not to spend the money on a bird table. I built it. I love my birds, the feathered type,” he laughed.

The former Erne North representative has not yet managed to buy the car he said he would get on receipt of his severance package.

“Sure, that’s what the severance was for; to get the old fellows out and the young ones in. I am still driving the same old car, the one I have is still going. When I get a new car I’ll let you know. I am going on holiday to Portush, though. I am going deep sea fishing. I don’t have a boat, I go on the boats you hire. Yes, I do catch fish, but it’s nearly always mackerel I catch.” Former SDLP Councillor John O’Kane received £24,400 following 30 years in the Council while the Ulster Unionist’s Harold Andrews received £11,200 for his 18 years in public life.

Sinn Fein’s Ruth Lynch, who also clocked up 18 years in Council, received £11,200 as well while her colleague Stephen Huggett received £9000 for 15 years’ service.

And after 14 years, Frank Britton, a former SDLP councillor, received £8,400 as part of his severage package, according to Detail Data’s recent ‘Places Apart’ investigation.

It was former Environment Minister Alex Attwood who introduced the one-off severance scheme for councillors leaving political life in advance of the local government reorganisation allowing those long serving politicians who stepped down to receive up to £35,000.

For more information visit www.thedetail.tv/data. Datasets are available at www.data.nicva.org.