Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Fianna Fáil is pleased to support the broad thrust of this motion, which involves the establishment of an anti-corruption agency, and to condemn without reservation or qualification corruption in all its forms. The Fianna Fáil Party has accepted the resignation of Councillor Joe Queenan on foot of last night's "RTE Investigates" programme which looked at standards in public office. Some of the behaviour displayed in last night's programme was shocking and completely unacceptable. The instances in which the law appeared to be clearly breached need to be fully investigated by the Garda. Prosecutions should be brought where appropriate. Separately, Fianna Fáil will immediately commence an internal inquiry under the auspices of its national executive, or ard-chomhairle, to establish the full facts in respect of each allegation that was made against a current member of the party and to determine what appropriate action should be taken. Fianna Fáil expects the highest standards from its public representatives. There is no tolerance within the party for any breach of such standards.

In that context, I will set out its track record in tackling corruption. Since 1997, Fianna Fáil has introduced a comprehensive series of measures to ensure the highest ethical standards are maintained in public office. Planning laws have been strengthened and reformed to reduce the potential for corruption in future. In opposition, we have strongly maintained our commitment to open and transparent politics, for example, when we published legislation on lobbying and political donations.

I will give an overview of some of the legislation that was enacted when Fianna Fáil was in government. The Standards in Public Office Act 2001 created the Standards in Public Office Commission, which supervises the disclosure of interests and tax compliance by public representatives. The commission was designed to ensure greater transparency in politics and the maintenance of the highest ethical standards in financial affairs by public representatives. The 2001 Act compels all officeholders to provide this information. Fianna Fáil introduced the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act 2001 which implemented the highest international OECD and EU standards in relation to anti-corruption laws, comprehensively set out definitions of corruption and those agents involved and established strong and clear punishments for those found guilty of corruption. The code of practice for employees of local authorities, which was introduced in 2001, covers a raft of areas to ensure local authority staff maintain their impeccable reputation in their execution of their official duties and avoid any conflict of interest. The Local Government Act 2001, which was a fundamental innovation in the sphere of local government, sets out the requirement for councillors to publicly declare their interest in any matters before the council. It obliges local authorities to hold a public register of an annual declaration of interests by councillors.

The Civil Service code of standards and behaviour, which was introduced in 2004, sets out the requirements to which civil servants must fully adhere. As a supplement to the ethics Act, the code underpins the high standards the Civil Service has consistently lived up to since the foundation of the State. The Local Elections (Disclosure of Donations and Expenditure) Act 1999, which ensures donations to the campaigns of local election candidates are made publicly available, has created a more transparent system of electioneering and ensured all democratic elections are subjected to strong oversight of who funds them. In 2009, the changes in the limits that apply to local election candidate expenditure placed spending restraints on local election candidates to reduce the role of money in such elections and restore public trust in the democratic process.

The Mahon tribunal recognised that the planning framework has been fundamentally changed in recent years. A hierarchical framework of plans has been created to ensure there is a sustainable development process. Furthermore, checks and balances have been placed on elected members of local authorities to reduce the scope for future corruption and unsound planning decisions. The Planning and Development Act 2000 consolidated and updated previous planning law along the principles of sustainable development. It strengthened the overall planning framework and set down the basis for proper planning into the future. The national spatial strategy and the regional and county development plans are all integral parts of the 2000 Act which created a hierarchical framework of plans that constrains the potential for corruption in local areas. Environmental impact statements were also provided for in the Act to ensure strong environmental standards are fully maintained in the planning process. The Planning and Development (Strategic Infrastructure) Act 2006 provides for the making to An Bord Pleanála of applications for planning permission in respect of certain proposed developments that are of strategic importance to the State. It also made certain other amendments to the Planning and Development Acts 2000 to 2004 to ensure strategic issues are rapidly dealt with outside the local authority structure.

After Fianna Fáil went into opposition, it introduced the Electoral (Amendment) (Political Donations) Bill 2011, which proposed to implement key recommendations of the Moriarty tribunal, cut donation limits and introduce an effective ban on corporate donations. The most significant part of the Bill proposed a restriction on corporate donations to parties and politicians which would amount to an effective ban. Specifically, all corporate donations of more than €100 would have had to have been declared within 14 days, authorised by a general meeting and registered with the Standards in Public Offices Commission. In addition, all companies, directors and significant shareholders would have had to have declared current or potential public contracts at the time of making any donation. We proposed such an approach on foot of legal advice that a complete ban would most likely be unconstitutional. Fianna Fáil would be happy to propose a constitutional amendment to go further on this issue. Other changes proposed in the Electoral (Amendment) (Political Donations) Bill 2011 included a reduction, from €6,348 to €2,500, in the allowable individual donations to political parties, with the level at which these must be publicly declared to fall from €5,078 to €1,000. The Bill would also have required the publication of donation statements within 25 days of polling. This requirement is currently set at 58 days for unsuccessful candidates and 31 March of the following year for successful candidates. The Bill would also have provided for the Standards in Public Office Commission to audit the accounts of political parties each year, with income and expenditure accounts, balance sheets and donations statements to be published. It would also have extended the supervision of the commission to further independent expenditure in referendums and would have implemented the recommendations of Mr. Justice Moriarty on extending provisions to independent or non-party candidates.

In Opposition, Fianna Fáil published a Register of Lobbyists Bill in my name, in January 2012, which set out a new regulatory regime to bring openness and transparency to the lobbying industry in Ireland. The regulation of lobbying is an integral part of our vision for fundamental political reform. Such reform must seek to restore public trust and confidence in the democratic process and ensure a level playing field for all citizens in influencing policy. The following OECD endorsed principles underpinned our legislation: that free and open access for all stakeholders to Government is an integral part of the democratic process; that lobbying public office holders is a legitimate activity; that there should be a strong level of transparency on what organisations and individuals are involved in attempting to influence public policy; and that a system for the registration of paid lobbyists should not impede free and open access to Government. Creating a clear regulatory framework that instils and upholds a culture of integrity and openness is essential to revamping the Irish political system.

We argue that our lobbying reforms directly complement our political donations Bill in creating a more open, fair way of doing politics. Specifically, our Bill set out the following measures: a comprehensive working definition of the term “lobbyist” that reflects the Irish political context; the establishment of a mandatory, publicly available lobbyist register; a register of returns that makes publicly available who is being lobbied and by whom; an OECD principle-based code of conduct by the Standards in Public Office Commission to help foster a culture of integrity; comprehensive implementation and sanction powers to create and enforce a culture of compliance; and a section of the Standards in Public Office Commission committed solely to the oversight of lobbying, avoiding the need for a new quango. We also called on the Government to co-ordinate with the EU on a mandatory EU lobbyist register to ensure that Brussels-based legislation across the Commission and Parliament is subject to fair and open democratic standards of accountability.

The Mahon tribunal set out a comprehensive series of measures to address the grave problems uncovered in its findings. We are calling on the Government to implement as many of the recommendations as soon as possible. However, to date it has failed to implement a number of them, such as the establishment of a planning regulator; that a breach of ethics should be a criminal offence; an increased role for the Standards in Public Office Commission; that public officials should be restricted from land dealings for a period of two years after leaving office; that all political parties should disclose full audited accounts; that a new definition should be established for political donations; and that donations should be strictly limited.

The disclosure requirements for public officials should be expanded to include conflicts of interest, non-material interests, electoral donations and interests enjoyed by a public official as part of a class of persons. Public officials should also be required to make a periodic disclosure of interests within 30 days of entering public office and to update their disclosures within 30 days of any significant change in their interests.

Fianna Fáil also has a proposal for the establishment of a new electoral commission. We believe that Ireland should have an electoral process with integrity and needs a new electoral commission with a wide remit, strong enforcement powers and sufficient resources. The current system for the administration of elections is totally inadequate. It is of the utmost importance that a new body is established to clean up the archaic electoral register. We have seen continual decline in turnout across elections in this country, yet the Department has said that it does not have the responsibility to address this, nor are there any measures to improve voter turnout. This is a complete dereliction of duty by the Minister and his Department in their responsibility for electoral administration.

A new independent electoral commission is required to take responsibility for the administration of elections and to amalgamate responsibilities for the management of our electoral process which is currently dispersed across several bodies, including the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, the 31 local authorities and a host of different agencies including SIPO, the Registrar of Political Parties, the Constituency Commission, the Referendum Commission and the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland. The franchise section of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government has shown itself completely unwilling to address failures in electoral administration and elections in Ireland.

What should be the role of an independent electoral commission? For Ireland to have an electoral process with integrity, it needs an electoral commission with a wide remit. Renaming SIPO and adding a few additional functions such as party registration, constituency boundary design and oversight of referendums are not sufficient. It should take over the election oversight role of the franchise section of the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government in managing candidate nominations, appointing returning officers, liaising with the local authorities in setting up polling stations and ensuring a smooth count process. It should be the job of the commission to oversee these roles, working in conjunction with the local authorities, and it is of the utmost importance that a new electoral commission take the lead role in cleaning up and modernising our vote processes and in encouraging turnout at elections. The new electoral commission should have the power to proactively call political organisations to account in relation to debates and it must be given sufficient regulatory powers and complete independence from ministerial influence.

Fianna Fáil is happy to support the broad thrust of the Bill and I am happy to have put on the record of the House the progressive actions taken by Fianna Fáil, both in the last period in Government and in Opposition, to promote integrity, honesty and transparency around the area of ethics in politics.

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