Press Releases

Press release regarding Donation Statements furnished by political parties for 2006

Date Released: 26.06.2007

Figures released by the Standards Commission today reveal that donations to political parties disclosed for 2006 amounted to €140,753.35.

Nine of the parties, including Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Progressive Democrats, disclosed no donations for 2006. Four political parities disclosed donations valued in excess of €5,078.95. Sinn Féin disclosed donations with the highest value, €87,233.80. The Green Party disclosed donations totalling €30,600, while the Socialist Party and the Labour Party disclosed donations of €11,819.55 and €11,100 respectively.

In its report to the Ceann Comhairle, the Standards Commission notes that 2006 was the first year in which Fianna Fáil produced a nil return; Fine Gael has done so since 2001, the Labour Party produced nil returns in 2004 and 2005, while the Progressive Democrats have produced nil returns since 2003. The Commission's report states that, in the light of this pattern of disclosure, the legislation governing donations to political parties requires urgent review.

The Standards Commission points out that it is not known how the political parties funded their 2007 general election campaigns, and that parties are soliciting donations below the disclosure threshold. Monitoring of election expenditure by the Commission is also limited to resources or material used during the election period itself.

The Commission says that a new approach is required to the funding of political parties, for increased transparency in such funding and for greater scrutiny of political party expenditure. The Standards Commission calls for implementation of Council of Europe recommendations on rules against corruption in the funding of political parties and electoral campaigns. Political parties should be required to keep proper income and expenditure accounts, these accounts should specify all donations and, in the case of donations over a certain value, donors should be identified. Accounts of political parties should also be presented at least annually to an independent authority.

Each of the 13 political parties were required under the Electoral Acts to furnish a Donation Statement to the Standards Commission indicating whether any donations exceeding €5,078.95 in value were received by them during 2006. Donations from the same donor during the year must be aggregated. Donations valued at €5,078.95 or less do not require disclosure. The maximum value of donations which a political party can accept from the same donor in the same year is €6,348.69.

Details of the donations disclosed by political parties are contained in the report published today. The report gives details of the donations disclosed by political parties and details of returns furnished to the Standards Commission by the "accounting units" of political parties. There is also a summary of the returns received from accounting units. The Standards Commission published a report on 4 April 2007 which showed that donations disclosed by individual TDs, Senators and MEPs for 2006 amounted to €131,923.67.

The Donation Statements furnished to the Standards Commission may be inspected and copied by members of the public at its offices at 18 Lower Leeson Street, Dublin 2. The information is also available, in summary form, on the Standards Commission's website www.sipo.gov.ie.

Issued by the Standards in Public Office Commission on 26 June 2007
Telephone: 01- 6395666
Fax: 01- 6395684
e-mail:sipo@sipo.gov.ie
website:www.sipo.gov.ie

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