The Boss follows in the footsteps of The Chief

Charles Haughey was not the first Taoiseach and leader of Fianna Fail to find creative and
innovative ways of supplementing his income. In that regard, The Boss was only following in the footsteps of The Chief.

When Eamon de Valera set up the Irish Press in 1931, it was largely funded by small shareholders in the USA. However, de Valera used a share structure that gave him complete control over the company, despite the fact that he only subscribed for $200 of the total share capital.

Over the subsequent years, The Irish Press became a cash cow for generations of the de Valera family. Despite the fact that the newspaper ceased production in 1995, de Valera’s grandson continues to extract substantial directors fees each year.