Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

This amendment of section 23 of the principal Act inserts new provisions for an investigation by the commission under the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995. The new provisions will provide that the standards commission, where it considers it appropriate to do so, will be able to investigate possible contraventions of the new requirement. The new provisions also provide that any such investigations are to be held in private unless the standards commission decides there are compelling reasons not to do so.

They also address a concern expressed by the Seanad Committee on Members Interests that if the commission were to investigate an ordinary Member on a specified act, an act or omission, that is inconsistent with the proper performance by the person of the functions of his or her office or position, or with the maintenance of public confidence in such performance, and the matter is one of significant public importance, then exclusions that are available to everyone else to whom the ethics legislation applies might not be available to ordinary Members. The exclusions relate to personal matters unrelated to office or function and incompetence and inefficiency.