Tom Parlon (Laois-Offaly, Progressive Democrats)

This would be a rare scenario. Failure to make a disclosure is not illegal under the legislation but it would be illegal under the criteria applied to ex officio members. They would breach their terms of contract.

Clearly it would lead to an investigation into the appointment. While inferring immediately that the person appointed would not be entitled to his job would certainly lead to an investigation into the appointment, declaring the job null and void would be very unfair to the applicant, who might not have had any connection with the withholding of information.