The IFA has agreed to pay its former secretary general Pat Smith €1.9m.

The details of the package were confirmed by the IFA in the interests of transparency to the Irish Farmers Journal.

The executive council of the association has been informed that full and final settlement of the legal actions between the parties amounts to €1.9m.

€1.55m of that figure relates to the severance Mr Smith was pursuing from the IFA.

He had originally agreed a package of €2m with then IFA president Eddie Downey.

The second action of defamation is being settled for a figure of €350,000.

Decision

The IFA executive council has been informed of the decision by the eight-strong inner executive board, which had been charged with the settling the matter.

The IFA has also stated that it will pay the legal fees for both sides.

The legal fees associated with the actions have yet to be determined but will be fully disclosed in the next set of accounts.

It is believed that the legal fees will amount to a six-figure sum.

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Exclusive: IFA reaches settlement with former secretary general Pat Smith