22/06/09 - Report on Expenditure of the Party Leaders Allowance (2008)

Part 2 - Statements of Expenditure furnished by the Party Leaders

Section 1.10(11) of the Act provides that parliamentary party leaders must prepare, or cause to be prepared, not more than 120 days after the end of the financial year in which an allowance has been paid, a statement of any expenditure from the allowance. The statement must be audited by a public auditor and must be submitted with the auditor's report to the Standards Commission within this 120 day period. Section 1.10(12)(a) of the Act provides that an allowance shall not be paid unless the statement and auditor's report have been received by the Standards Commission not more than 120 days after the end of the financial year to which the statement and auditor's report relate.

2.2 The Standards Commission wrote to the parliamentary leaders of the six qualifying parties on 5 March 2009 and enclosed a form (Statement of Expenditure of Party Leaders Allowance form (08/PP/PLA)) for completion and return to the Standards Commission by 31 March 2009. (This date is not specified in the legislation. However, having regard to the 120 day statutory deadline, the return date of 31 March was chosen to ensure that parliamentary leaders would have sufficient time to furnish their statements in advance of the statutory deadline of 30 April 2009.) The letter informed the parliamentary leaders that they must provide details, under the relevant headings on the form, of the specific items to which the expenditure was applied and that the form must be accompanied by an auditor's report.

2.3 The parliamentary leaders to whom the Standards Commission wrote were:

Mr Brian Cowen TD, Fianna Fáil
Mr Enda Kenny TD, Fine Gael
Mr Eamonn Gilmore TD, Labour Party
Ms Mary Harney TD, Progressive Democrats*
Mr John Gormley TD, Green Party
Mr Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin TD, Sinn Féin

*Although Senator Ciarán Cannon was parliamentary leader of the Progressive Democrats from April 2008, section 1.10(1) of the Act provides that the allowance shall be paid to a member of Dáil Éireann.  The allowance, therefore, continued to be paid in 2008 to Deputy Harney.

2.4 In relation to Fianna Fáil where there had been a change of parliamentary party leader during 2008, section 1.10(11)(b) and (c) of the Act, provides that where a person who is the parliamentary leader of a qualifying party ceases to be the parliamentary leader of the party he/she shall prepare or cause to be prepared a statement of any expenditure from that allowance. In other words, Deputy Bertie Ahern was responsible for furnishing a statement of expenditure in respect of the period in 2008 during which he was the parliamentary leader of Fianna Fáil. This provision does not apply, however, if the previous parliamentary party leader and the current parliamentary leader agree in writing that expenditure from the annual allowance paid to the previous leader during 2008 shall be included in the statement of expenditure furnished by the current leader. Deputy Ahern had informed the Standards Commission on 18 July 2008 that details of expenditure of the allowance paid to him during the period 1 January 2008 to 5 May 2008 would be included in the statement of expenditure furnished by Deputy Cowen. A single Statement of Expenditure was completed by Deputy Cowen (incorporating expenditure from the allowance paid to Deputy Ahern).

2.5 A Statement of Expenditure/Public Auditor's Report was received by the Standards Commission from the parliamentary leaders of all six qualifying parties within the specified period (i.e., by 30 April 2009).

2.6 Section 1.10(11)(e) of the Act provides that the Standards Commission must consider each statement and auditor's report furnished to it and, if necessary, consult with the parliamentary leader on any matter contained in the statement. The Standards Commission considered it appropriate to write to Deputy Eamonn Gilmore seeking further information regarding an item of expenditure contained on his Statement.

2.7 Parliamentary party leaders are required to state on their Statement of Expenditure of the Party Leaders Allowance if the allowance has been used for electoral purposes. Each of the parliamentary party leaders has stated that the allowance was not used for electoral purposes.

2.8 The Standards Commission must furnish a report to the Minister for Finance on the statements and auditors' reports received indicating:

• whether the statements and auditors' reports have been submitted within the specified period,
• whether any expenditure is disclosed which does not comply with subsection 1(10)(5) of the Act,
• whether the statements are adequate, or
• whether the statements are inappropriate.

2.9 The Standards Commission, having considered the Statements of Expenditure/Public Auditors' Reports, is now satisfied that:

• the Statements of Expenditure were received within the specified period
• the Statements of Expenditure do not disclose any expenditure which does not comply with section 1.10(5) of the Act,
• the Statements of Expenditure are adequate, and
• the Statements of Expenditure are not inappropriate.

2.10 The Standards Commission is required to lay a copy of its report to the Minister for Finance before each House of the Oireachtas. A copy of the statements and auditors' reports received must be retained by the Standards Commission for three years and be made available for public inspection and copying. The Statements of Expenditure/Public Auditors' Reports furnished to the Standards Commission may be inspected and copied by members of the public at the offices of the Standards Commission, 18 Lower Leeson Street, Dublin 2. The information will also be available, in summary form, on the website of the Standards Commission http://www.sipo.gov.ie/en/.

2.11 Details of the allowances paid to the parliamentary leaders are shown in Table 1:

Table 1 - Details of funding available to Parliamentary Leaders of Qualified Political Parties under the Party Leaders Allowance during 2008

* Where funding in respect of a particular year is not spent in that year, it must be accounted for in the statement(s) for the year in which it is actually spent.

2.12 Table 2 shows the breakdown given by each political party of expenditure of the allowance during 2008.

Table 2 - Breakdown of expenditure of the allowance during 2008

Categories of expenditure

(a) the general administration of the parliamentary activities of a qualifying party,

(b) the provision of technical or specialist advice likely to be required in connection with legislative proposals or potential parliamentary initiatives,

(c) research and training,

(d) policy formulation,

(e) the provision of consultant services, including the engagement of public relations services,

(f) polling or public attitude sampling in connection with parliamentary debates or initiatives,

(g) the purchase of support services for a parliamentary party from the party,

(h) the payment to a parliamentary leader of any salary or honorarium in respect of duties arising from his or her activities as such leader as distinct from those of a member of Dáil Éireann or a holder of a Ministerial office,

(i) the payment to another person of any salary or honorarium in respect of duties arising from the person's activities in a parliamentary party,

(j) the provision for, or recoupment of, transport and personal expenditure incurred by a parliamentary leader, officers or a parliamentary party spokesperson as a result of their parliamentary party function,

(k) entertainment.

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