December 2006 - Guidelines for Political Parties on donations and prohibited donations

8. Donation Statements

A Donation Statement must be furnished to the Standards Commission by the appropriate officer of each political party not later than 31 March every year.

The Donation Statement must show whether or not, in the preceding calendar year, the party received, from the same person, a donation exceeding in value €5,078.95. Donations from the same person in the same calendar year must be aggregated and the donations treated as a single donation. Part 3 outlines the circumstances in which a donation is deemed to be made to a political party. Part 6 outlines the procedures which must be put in place for the purposes of aggregating donations to the party. As stated in Part 6 all donations from the same person which the appropriate officer has been notified of which have an aggregate value in excess of €5,078.95 should now be disclosed on the party's annual Donation Statement. This might include donations which an individual donor is required to disclose under section 24(1A) of the Act (see part 5(d) above).

For each donation which is required to be disclosed, the value and nature of the donation(s) must be stated together with the name, address and a description of the person by, or on whose behalf, the donation(s) was made. The Donation Statement must be accompanied by a statutory declaration that, to the best of the appropriate officer's knowledge and belief, the Donation Statement is correct in every material respect and that he/she has taken all reasonable action in order to satisfy him/herself as to its accuracy. The Statutory Declaration must be witnessed by a person who is either a practising solicitor, a Commissioner for Oaths, a Peace Commissioner or a Notary Public.

The appropriate officer should ensure that the Donation Statement and statutory declaration furnished to the Standards Commission are accompanied by a statement from the financial institution in which the political donations account of party headquarters is held together with a Certificate of Monetary Donations relating to that account.

The appropriate officer of each political party has a statutory duty to make such enquiries and maintain such records as are necessary for the purpose of furnishing the party's Donation Statement and making the statutory declaration. As stated in Part 6, procedures should now be put in place to ensure that appropriate officers are notified by branches and subsidiary organisations of all donations exceeding a value of €100. This is to ensure that the party does not accept donations in excess of the maximum prescribed limit. These procedures, however, will also assist an appropriate officer in meeting his/her requirements in relation to the party's annual Donation Statement.

Where additional or supplemental information in relation to the party's Donation Statement is required by the Standards Commission, it must be provided by the appropriate officer in the form specified by the Standards Commission and be accompanied by a statutory declaration, if the Standards Commission so requires.

The Standards Commission must consider every Donation Statement furnished to it by the appropriate officer of a political party. Where the Standards Commission finds a minor error or omission in a Donation Statement, it will furnish details of the error or omission to the appropriate officer and will notify the appropriate officer that he/she has 14 days from the date of the notice in which to correct the error or make good the omission.

Where, following consideration by it of a Donation Statement, the Standards Commission is of the opinion that a contravention of the legislation may have occurred, it is required to notify the appropriate officer of the possible contravention and afford him / her 14 days to furnish any comments he/she may have. The Standards Commission will consider the comments provided by the appropriate officer and, if it is still of the opinion that a contravention of the legislation has occurred, will furnish a report on the matter, together with any relevant documentation, to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

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