Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In correspondence my party and I had with the Standards in Public Office Commission in 2019 when we first brought to its attention the William Hampton bequest of more than £2 million in cash and assets, it delayed its examination of it.

There was correspondence between the leader of Sinn Féin and her office and SIPO. SIPO essentially conceded to Deputy Mary Lou McDonald's argument and contention there are effectively two Sinn Féins. There is Sinn Féin in the North, which is organised and registered in the North and can take advantage of British laws where there is no limit applied to donations. Even though the bequest by Mr. Hampton was bequeathed to Sinn Féin in the Republic, Sinn Féin made a corporate decision to accept it in the North. SIPO accepted there is a legal difference between both jurisdictions, but that does not mean there is not a real problem. There is a real problem as articulated by Deputy McAuliffe.

Frankly, from where I am standing, it is unethical to accept donations of that scale that dwarf the €2,500 corporate limit on which we decided as a Parliament and as a society more generally because of the toxic and poisonous influence of money on politics. It is not right that is accepted. Either parties themselves must decide whether this is right and whether it fits in with their moral and ethical compass or we legislate. I understand the challenges involved in legislation given we must deal with two jurisdictions on this island. I am not blind to the arguments and points articulated by Deputy Ó Broin in terms of potential imbalances that might be introduced in the system in the North if we choose to go this way, but that should not act as a barrier to us dealing with this because it is a very real issue. We have seen the corrupting influence of big money on politics in this country and we have learned those lessons. I think we need to learn those lessons from a 32-county all-island perspective.

I will conclude my remarks by saying that in the last piece of correspondence we received from the Standards in Public Office Commission, it specifically suggested a new electoral commission, when formed, should prioritise and examine this issue. I hope we can do so, that we do not leave it to the electoral commission, and that we look at every possible tool and weapon in our armoury to address this problem, because it is a problem.