05/08/08 - Explanatory note for Companies, Trade Unions, Building Societies and other societies

Electoral Act 1997, as amended (the Act) provides that there shall be included in:

• the report by the directors of a company under section 158 of the Companies Act, 1963, and the annual return under section 125 or 126, as may be appropriate, of that Act,
• the annual return to be made to the Registrar of Friendly Societies by a trade union (within the meaning of the Trade Union Acts, 1871 to 1990) or a society registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Acts, 1893 to 1978, or the Friendly Societies Acts, 1896 to 1977, and
• the report of a building society (within the meaning of the Building Societies Act, 1989) under section 78 of that Act,

particulars of all donations (as described below) exceeding €5,078.95 in value made by the company, trade union, building society or other society, as the case may be, in the year to which the report or return relates, including particulars sufficient to identify

1. the value of each such donation, and
2. the person to whom the donation was made.

For the purposes of the Act,

• a company has the same meaning as in the Companies Acts, 1963 to 2003
• all donations made by the company, trade union, building society or other society, as the case may be, to the same person in the year to which the report or return relates must be aggregated and treated as a single donation.

A donation is defined in the Act as any contribution given for political purposes by any person, whether or not the person is a member of a political party, to a political party, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament or a third party or a candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European election.

A donation for political purposes includes all or any of the following -

1. a donation of money,
2. a donation of property or goods,
3. conferring the right to use, without payment or other consideration, indefinitely or for a specified period, any property or goods,
4. the supply of services without payment or other consideration therefor,
5. the difference between the commercial price and the price charged for the purchase, acquisition or use of property or goods or the supply of any service where the price, fee or other consideration is less than the commercial price, or
6. in the case of a contribution made in connection with an event organised for the purpose of raising funds for a political party or a member of a political party, the gross value of that contribution.

Political purposes means any of the following purposes, namely:

(i)(I) to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the interests of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas or a representative in the European Parliament, or

(II) to present, directly or indirectly, the policies or a particular policy of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament or a third party, or

(III) to present, directly or indirectly, the comments of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament or a third party with regard to the policy or policies of another political party, political group, member of either House of the Oireachtas, representative in the European Parliament, third party or candidate at an election or referendum or otherwise, or

(IV) to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the interests of a third party in connection with the conduct or management of any campaign conducted with a view to promoting or procuring a particular outcome in relation to a policy or policies or functions of the Government or any public authority;

(ii) to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the election of a candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European election or to solicit votes for or against a candidate or to present the policies or a particular policy of a candidate or the views of a candidate on any matter connected with the election or the comments of a candidate with regard to the policy or policies of a political party or a political group or of another candidate at the election or otherwise;

(iii) otherwise to influence the outcome of the election or a referendum or campaign referred to in paragraph (i)(IV) of this definition.

A person includes an individual, a body corporate and an unincorporated body of persons. A body corporate and any subsidiary thereof is deemed to be one person.

A third party means any individual or group, other than a registered political party or election candidate, who or which accepts, in a particular calendar year, a donation exceeding in value €126.97.

A company, trade union, building society or other society which fails to comply with the above requirements will be guilty of an offence under the Act. The penalty for such an offence is, on summary conviction, a fine not exceeding €1,270.

Where an offence which has been committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with the consent of, or to be attributable to, any neglect on the part of any person being a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body corporate, or a person purporting to act in any such capacity, that person as well as the body corporate will be deemed to be guilty of that offence.

For further information please contact:

The Standards in Public Office Commission,
18 Lower Leeson Street,
Dublin 2.

Tel : (01) 639 5666
Fax : (01) 639 5684

E-Mail : sipo@sipo.gov.ie