Written answers

Thursday, 19 February 2015

Department of Public Expenditure and Reform

Parliamentary Party Allowances

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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77. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide the up-to-date totals of the amounts paid to individual Independent Teachtaí Dála in the 31st Dáil Éireann, under the Leader's Allowance category; or any other equivalent category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7483/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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78. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if any Teachta Dála has claimed anything, other than the maximum available, under the Leader's Allowance category or under any subsequent equivalent category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7484/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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79. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide a breakdown on the total individual amounts paid to Independent Teachtaí Dála in the 31st Dáil Éireann, which was vouchable; the amount that was unvouched, under the Leader's Allowance category; or any subsequent equivalent category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7485/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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80. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if the amounts paid to Independent Teachtaí Dála in the 31st Dáil Éireann are still tax free, under the Leader's Allowance category or any subsequent equivalent category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7486/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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81. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide a list of what qualifies as allowable expenditure, that would be provided, in respect of the vouchable payments paid to Independent Teacthaí Dála in the 31st Dáil Éireann, under the Leader's Allowance category; or any subsequent equivalent category; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7487/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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82. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will confirm that the €137,000 plus payments paid to Independent Teachtaí Dála in the 31st Dáil Éireann, under the Leader's Allowance category, up to 1 July 2014, could have been used for any purpose without accountability, as these payments were all unvouched; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7488/15]

Photo of Brendan GriffinBrendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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83. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide a brief history of the way it came to pass that a Leader's Allowance is paid to Independent Teachtaí Dála; when this started; the Taoiseach at the time; the first Teachtaí Dála to benefit from this arrangement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7489/15]

Photo of Brendan HowlinBrendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 77 to 83, inclusive, together.

The Parliamentary Activities Allowance (formerly known as the Party Leader's Allowance) is provided for under the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act 1938 as amended, most recently by the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices)(Amendment) Act 2014.Provision for payment of the allowance to Independent TDs was made under the Oireachtas (Miscellaneous Provisions) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act 1996. In relation to the first Independent TDs to receive payment of the allowance, as advised in previous replies on this issue the current data systems in use do not permit detailing the payments prior to 2001.

The legislation sets out the categories of expenditure for which the allowance may be used and provides that it is not liable to income tax. Under the provisions of the 2014 Act, and with effect from 1 July 2014, the same audit and reporting provisions applicable to Parliamentary Leaders now also apply to Independent Members in receipt of the allowance. For the first time, Independent Members must record and account to the Standards in Public Office Commission for expenditure from the allowance.

Details of the payments made in the 31st Dáil to each Independent TD up to 2013 are contained in my reply to the Deputy on 16 December 2014 under Question No. 253 (ref. 48134/14). The amounts paid for the periods 1 January to 30 June 2014; 1 July to 31 December 2014 and January 2015 are set out in the following table.Michael Fitzmaurice TD, elected to Dáil Éireann in October of 2014, has not yet claimed the allowance.

Independent TDs
1 January to 30 June 2014
1 July to 31 December 2014
January 2015
Catherine Murphy
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Finian McGrath
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
John Halligan
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Luke "Ming" Flanagan
€16,535.95
€0.00
€3,086.42
Mattie McGrath
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Maureen O' Sullivan
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Michael Healy Rae
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Michael Lowry
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Michael Wallace
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Noel Grealish
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Shane Ross
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Seamus Healy
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Stephen Donnelly
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Thomas Pringle
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Tom Fleming
€20,575.98
€18,518.52
€3,086.42
Michael Fitzmaurice
€0.00
€0.00
€0.00
Totals
€304,599.67
€259,259.28
€43,209.88

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