Former Dutch railway chief Timo Huges has been paid a €75,000 bonus for his work last year, despite statements last week that he would not be given one, the Telegraaf said at the weekend.

Huges was forced out after it emerged he had lied about his involvement in passing on confidential information to an NS subsidiary during the tender process in Limburg.

At the time, NS said Huges, who had worked for the state-owned railway company since October 2013, would not be given a golden handshake.

However, the Telegraaf says Huges has already been given a €75,000 bonus by the company’s supervisory board because the NS met targets on punctuality and customer satisfaction in 2014.

Management board members had not been told and the company’s press department were also lied to about the payment, the paper says.

The Telegraaf bases its claims on several company sources.

Under the terms of his contract, Huges was entitled to a bonus of 20% of his salary.