Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The code of conduct does not stand in isolation but is part of the wider ethics framework established by the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995 and the Standards in Public Office Act 2001. Section 10(7) of the latter requires office holders to have regard to and be guided by the code. The code cannot impose any new requirements that are not already set out in legislation; it mainly attempts to provide guidance at a level of detail that would be difficult to express in legislation. It can, however, be used by the Standards in Public Office Commission as guidance on whether a complaint made under section 4 of the Act should be investigated. This is the section of the Act under which a complaint of a breach of the ethics Act can be made.

The commission has a supervisory role under the ethics legislation. Its functions include supervising the disclosure of interests and compliance with tax clearance requirements. The commission has specific statutory powers to investigate and make findings about failures of compliance with the Act. The code of conduct, under the ethics Act, is admissible in any investigation of the commission and may be taken into account by it in its determinations. The penalties available to the commission are those specified in the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995; that is, the making of a report under section 24 to the Committee on Members' Interests of the relevant House. The code is also admissible in any proceedings before a court, tribunal or committee of this or the other House. The code in its own right indicates standards of conduct and integrity for office holders which are not expressly covered by legislation.

That is the role of the code of conduct. With regard to the accessibility of information about declarations made by Members, Members' interests are published on an annual basis. These provisions remain in place and are not in any way interfered with.

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