Standards in Public Office Act, 2001

• Permanent Page URL

Extent of Amendment

(1) In subsection (1), the following definition shall be substituted for the definition of “gift”:

“‘gift’ means a gift of money or other property excluding a donation (within the meaning of the Electoral Act, 1997 );”.

(2) In subsection (2), the following definitions shall be inserted:

“‘Act of 1997’ means the Electoral Act, 1997 ;

‘Act of 2001’ means the Standards in Public Office Act, 2001;

‘specified act’ means an act or omission referred to in section 4 (1)(a) of the Act of 2001 and references to the doing of a specified act include references to the making of such an omission and cognate words shall be construed accordingly, but references, in relation to a member, to a specified act shall be construed as if the references in the said section 4(1)(a) to the performance by the specified person of the functions of the office or position by reference to which he or she is such a person were references to the performance by the member of the functions of the office of member.”.

(3) In subsection (3), “or impose on the person a significant loss, liability, penalty, forfeiture, punishment or other disadvantage without also conferring it on, withholding it from or imposing it on” shall be substituted for “without also conferring it on or withholding it from”.

(1) In subsection (1), “not later than the following 31 January, prepare and furnish to the Commission” shall be substituted for “not later than 30 days after that date, prepare and furnish to the Clerk”.

(2) In subsection (2), “not later than the following 31 January” shall be substituted for “not later than 30 days after that date”.

(3) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (3):

“(3A) (a) Where either House is dissolved during the period of 30 days from a registration date, a person who was a member on that date may request the first Committee appointed after the general election for members of that House following that dissolution to give him or her advice under section 12 in relation to this section and, if a member does so—

(i) he or she shall furnish to the Clerk, with his or her statement under subsection (1) or (2) in relation to that registration date, a statement in writing to the effect that he or she has made the request aforesaid,

(ii) the member may, not later than 21 days after the receipt of the advice from the Committee, prepare and furnish to the Clerk a statement in writing of any alterations to his or her statement under subsection (1) or (2) falling to be made by virtue of the advice, and

(iii) section 6(4) shall apply to a statement under this subsection as it applies to a statement furnished to the Clerk under paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of section 29(1).”.

In subsection (4)—

(a) in paragraph (a), “paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of” shall be inserted before “section 29(1)”, and

(b) in paragraph (b)(ii), “in the case of the statement of the correction, if it” shall be substituted for “if either of those statements”.

(1) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (2):

“(2A) A member referred to in subsection (2) who requests the Committee to give him or her advice under section 12(1)(b) in relation to this section and who does not receive the advice before the speech or vote concerned shall—

(a) if it is a case to which paragraph (a) of subsection (2) applies, make a declaration of the fact of the request in the proceedings concerned before or during that speech and, upon receipt of the advice, as soon as may be, make a declaration in writing of the advice and furnish it to the clerk, or the clerk to the committee, concerned, as may be appropriate, and

(b) if it is a case to which paragraph (b) of subsection (2) applies, make the first-mentioned declaration aforesaid in writing and furnish it before voting to the Clerk, or the clerk to the committee, concerned, as may be appropriate and, upon receipt of the advice, as soon as may be, make a declaration in writing of the advice and furnish it to the Clerk, or the clerk to the committee concerned, as may be appropriate,

and subsection (5) shall apply to a declaration under this subsection as it applies to a declaration under subsection (2) with the modification that paragraph (b) shall be construed as providing for the laying of a copy of a declaration under this subsection before the House in lieu of publishing it in accordance with that paragraph.”.

(2) In subsection (3), “or impose on the person a significant loss, liability, penalty, forfeiture, punishment or other disadvantage without also conferring it on, withholding it from or imposing it on” shall be substituted for “without also conferring it or withholding it from”.

(1) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (1):

“(1A) Notwithstanding subsection (1), a House may by resolution change the name of the committee appointed by it under this section to another name, and whenever the name of such a committee is so changed, references in this Act to the first-mentioned name shall be construed as references to that other name.”.

(2) In subsection (2), “or done a specified act” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7”.

(3) In subsection (3), “or that there is not sufficient evidence to establish a prima facie case in relation to the complaint” shall be inserted after “frivolous or vexatious”.

(4) In subsection (4)—

(a) “or done a specified act” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7”, and

(b) “of that House” shall be deleted.

(1) In subsection (1), “or done a specified act” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7” and “or section 4 of the Act of 2001” shall be inserted after “section 8”.

(2) The following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (2):

“(2) Where a Committee, either during or at the conclusion of an investigation under this section in relation to section 5 or 7, becomes of opinion that the member the subject of the investigation has not contravened that section but may have contravened the other section or done a specified act, it may carry out an investigation under this section to determine whether the person has contravened that other section or done the specified act.”.

(3) The following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (2):

“(2A) Where a Committee, either during or at the conclusion of an investigation under this section in relation to a specified act, becomes of opinion that the member the subject of the investigation has not done that specified act but may have done another such act or contravened section 5 or 7, it may carry out an investigation under this section to determine whether the person has done that other specified act or contravened section 5 or 7.

(2B) If a Committee becomes of opinion that evidence sufficient to sustain a complaint referred or made to it under section 8 is not and will not be available, it may decide not to carry out, or to discontinue an investigation under this section.”.

(4) In subsection (3)(a), “ section 4 of the Act of 2001 or section 8” shall be substituted for “section 8”.

(1) In subsection (1)(b), “or done a specified act” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7”.

(2) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (1):

“(1A) If, either during or at the conclusion of an investigation under section 9, a Committee is of opinion that the person the subject of the investigation may have committed an offence—

(a) it shall prepare a report in writing in relation to the matter and furnish it together with any relevant document or other thing in its possession to the Director of Public Prosecutions who shall notify the Committee whether, following the receipt of the report, he or she has initiated, or caused to be initiated, proceedings for an offence in respect of any matter mentioned therein or has decided not to initiate, or cause to be initiated, any such proceedings and of the final outcome of any such proceedings (including any appeal, whether by way of case stated or otherwise, rehearing or retrial), and

(b) it shall add to its report under subsection (1) a copy of its report under paragraph (a) and a statement of the notification or notifications aforesaid.”.

(3) In subsection (2)—

(a) in paragraph (a), “or, as the case may be, whether a specified act has been done and whether the act is continuing” shall be inserted after “continuing”,

(b) in paragraph (b), “and that a specified act has not been done” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7”, and

(c) the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (c):

“(c) in case the determination is that there has been a contravention of section 5 or 7, or that a specified act has been done, by the member—

(i) if the determination is that the contravention or act is continuing, the steps required to be taken by him or her to secure compliance by him or her with section 5 or 7 or the cesser of the act,

(ii) whether the contravention or act was committed or done inadvertently, negligently, recklessly or intentionally,

(iii) whether the contravention was, in all the circumstances, a serious or minor contravention, and

(iv) whether the member acted in good faith and in the belief that his or her action was in accordance with guidelines published or advice given in writing by a Committee under section 12,

and may refer to such matters, if any, as the Committee considers appropriate.”.

In subsection (1)(a), “and that a specified act was not done” shall be inserted after “section 5 or 7”.

(1) In subsection (1)—

(a) in paragraph (a), “ section 4 (1)(a) of the Act of 2001 and with” shall be inserted after “by them with”, and

(b) in paragraph (b), “the said section 4 (1)(a) or” shall be inserted after “any particular case, of”.

(2) The following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (1):

“(1A) Guidelines drawn up and published under subsection (1) by a Committee of either House—

(a) subject to paragraph (b), shall remain in force until revoked, by guidelines drawn up and published under that subsection by that Committee or by a Committee appointed by the members of that House under section 8 after a subsequent general election for members of that House replacing the first-mentioned guidelines or amending other guidelines under that section, and

(b) may be amended by guidelines under that subsection drawn up and published by a Committee specified in paragraph (a).

(1B) A document purporting to be guidelines under subsection (1) shall be taken, unless the contrary is shown, to be such guidelines and shall be admissible in any proceedings before a court or other tribunal or a Committee or the Commission, and any provision of any such guidelines that appears to the tribunal, the Committee or the Commission to be relevant to a question in the proceedings may be taken into account by it in determining the question.”.

(1) In subsection (1)—

(a) “or ceases to be an office holder before a registration date” shall be inserted after “office holder on a registration date”, and

(b) the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (b):

“(b) if the person is an office holder on a subsequent registration date or ceased to be an office holder before such a date but after the last previous registration date, at any time when he was an office holder during the period between the first-mentioned date and the last previous registration date or, as the case may be, between the first-mentioned date and the date of the cesser.”.

(2) In subsection (4), “not later than the following 31 January” shall be substituted for “not later than 30 days after that date”.

In subsection (3)(b), “office holder” shall be substituted for “officer”.

The following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (a) of subsection (2):

“(a) Section 20 shall apply to a statement under subsection (1)(a) with the modifications that the references in that section to section 19(3)(a)(i) shall be construed as references to subsection (1)(a), the references to the special advisership shall be construed as references to the office of Attorney General and with any other necessary adaptations.”.

The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (6):

“(7) Subsection (4) shall be complied with not later than 60 days after the person concerned was appointed to act as a special adviser and, in case a document referred to in paragraph (b) of that subsection is furnished to the office holder concerned at any time after the expiration of the period aforesaid, not later than 60 days after that time, and such compliance shall, in a case where the office holder concerned dies or becomes incapacitated, be effected by the Taoiseach.”.

(1) The following subsections shall be substituted for subsection (1):

“(1) A statement furnished by a person under section 17(1)(a) or 18(2)(a) shall—

(a) in case, as may be appropriate, the person was appointed to the directorship or position concerned before the date of the commencement of this Part and the statement is the first such statement so furnished by the person since that date, be in respect of the period from that date or, if it is later, the date on which, as may be appropriate, the directorship or position became a designated directorship or a designated position to the date of the statement.

(b) in case the person was so appointed on or after the date of such commencement and the statement is the first such statement so furnished by the person since such appointment, be in respect of the period from the date of such appointment or, if it is later, the date on which, as may be appropriate, the directorship or position became a designated directorship or a designated position to the following 31 December,

(c) in any other case, be in respect of the period beginning on the day immediately following the date of the expiration of the period to which the last previous such statement so furnished by the person related to the following 31 December or, if it is earlier, the date on which the appointment concerned ended.

(1A) A statement furnished by a person under section 19(3)(a)(i) shall—

(a) in case the person was appointed to the special advisership concerned before the date of the commencement of this Part and the statement is the first such statement so furnished by the person since that date, be in respect of the period from that date to the date of the statement,

(b) in case the person was so appointed on or after the date of such commencement and the statement is the first such statement so furnished by the person since such appointment, be in respect of the period from the date of such appointment to the following 31 December, and

(c) in any other case, be in respect of the period beginning on the day immediately following the date of the expiration of the period to which the last previous such statement so furnished by the person related to the following 31 December or, if it is earlier, the date on which, in relation to the person, the period referred to in section 19(2) ends.”.

(2) The following subsections shall be substituted for subsection (3):

“(3) A statement by a person under section 17(1)(a), 18(2)(a) or 19(3)(a)(i) in respect of a period specified in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) or paragraph (a) of subsection (1A) shall be furnished by the person to the person or persons concerned not later than such time in the year concerned as the Minister may determine.

(3A) A statement by a person under section 17(1)(a), 18(2)(a) or 19(3)(a)(i) in respect of a period specified in paragraph (b) or (c) of subsection (1) or paragraph (b) or (c) of subsection (1A) shall be furnished by the person to the person or persons concerned not later than 31 January in the year following the year in which the period fell.

(3B) Notwithstanding subsection (3A), where, in relation to a person who is a special adviser, within the meaning of section 19, the period referred to in subsection (2) of that section ends, a statement under subsection (3)(a)(i) of that section in relation to that period shall be furnished by the person to the persons concerned not later than 28 days from such ending.”.

In subsections (3) and (4), “an ordinary member of the Commission” shall be substituted for “a member of the Commission” in each place where it occurs.

(1) In subsection (1)—

(a) in paragraph (b), “that” shall be deleted, and

(b) “to the Commission” shall be substituted for “to the Clerk and, subject to subsection (2), the Clerk shall refer the matter to the Commission and shall furnish a copy of the complaint to the Commission”.

(2) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (4):

“(5) If a Committee by resolution determines—

(a) that a complaint under section 8(2) made or referred to it should be investigated by the Commission, or

(b) in the case of a member (other than a member who is or, at the relevant time, was an office holder), that an investigation should be carried out by the Commission to determine whether the member has contravened section 5, 7 or 12 or has done a specified act,

the chairman of the Committee shall—

(i) in a case to which paragraph (a) relates, refer the matter to the Commission and furnish a copy of the complaint concerned to the Commission, and

(ii) in a case to which paragraph (b) relates, make a complaint in writing in relation to the matter to the Commission.”.

In subsection (3), “the provision of this Act or the Act of 1997 to which the investigation relates or has not done a specified act, but, as may be appropriate, may have contravened another provision of Part II, III or IV or the Act of 1997 or may have done a specified act, it may carry out an investigation under this section to determine, as appropriate, whether the person has contravened that other provision or that Act or has done a specified act” shall be substituted for the words from and including “the provision of this Act” to the end of the subsection.

(1) In subsection (1)—

(a) the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (b):

“(b) if the investigation followed a complaint under section 22 or section 4 of the Act of 2001, the person who made the complaint and, if the complaint was referred or made to the Commission under section 22 (5), the Committee concerned, and”

(b) in paragraph (c)(i), “or the Act of 1997 or has done a specified act” shall be inserted after “Part II, III or IV”.

(2) In subsection (2)—

(a) “or member” shall be inserted after “as an office holder”,

(b) “or that the person may have contravened Part II before becoming an office holder” shall be deleted, and

(c) in paragraph (a), “whether following the receipt of the report,” shall be substituted for “as to whether”.

(3) In subsection (3)—

(a) the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (a):

“(a) whether there has been a contravention of Part II, III or IV or the Act of 1997 by the person concerned or that person has done a specified act and whether the contravention or act is continuing,”,

(b) in paragraph (b), “or the Act of 1997, by the person and the person has not done a specified act,” shall be substituted for “, by the person,”, and

(c) in paragraph (c)—

(i) “Part II, III or IV or the Act of 1997 by the person or that the person has done a specified act” shall be substituted for “Part II, III or IV by the person”, and

(ii) the following subparagraphs shall be substituted for subparagraphs (i), (ii) and (iii):

“(i) if the determination is that the contravention is continuing or, as the case may be, that the specified act is continuing, the steps required to be taken by him or her to secure compliance by him or her with Part II, III or IV or the Act of 1997 or to secure the discontinuance of the specified act, as the case may be, and the period of time within which such steps should be taken,

(ii) whether the contravention or act was committed or done inadvertently, negligently, recklessly or intentionally,

(iii) whether the contravention or act was, in all the circumstances, a serious or a minor matter, and”.

(4) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (5):

“(5A) A public body to which a report under subsection (1) or subsection (2) of section 23 of the Act of 2001 is furnished may, having considered the report and invited submissions from the person concerned in relation to the matter and considered any such submissions, take such action in relation to the person to whom the report relates as it considers appropriate including suspension without payment of remuneration from the office or position held or occupied by the person for such person for such period as it may determine, being, in the case of a person to whom a report under the said subsection (2) relates, a period ending not later than the date on which the documents concerned specified in subsection (1)(a) of the said section 23 are furnished to the Commission.”.

(1) In subsection (1)—

(a) in paragraph (a), “(other than members who are not office holders)” shall be inserted after “publish to persons”, “ section 4 (1)(a) of the Act of 2001 or” shall be inserted after “to whom” and “that section and” shall be inserted after “by them with”, and

(b) in paragraph (b), “and may, at the request of a person give advice to the person, if section 4 (1)(a) applies to the person, in relation to that section or as to the application in any particular case, of that section” shall be inserted after “any such provision”.

(2) The following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (1):

“(1A) Guidelines drawn up and published under subsection (1)—

(a) subject to paragraph (b), shall remain in force until revoked by guidelines drawn up and published under that subsection, and

(b) may be amended by guidelines drawn up and published under that subsection.

(1B) A document purporting to be guidelines under subsection (1) shall be taken, unless the contrary is shown, to be such guidelines and shall be admissible in any proceedings before a court or other tribunal or a Committee or the Commission, and any provision of any such guidelines that appears to the tribunal, the Committee or the Commission to be relevant to a question in the proceedings may be taken into account by it in determining the question.”.

(3) In subsection (2), “the provision concerned of Part II, III or IV or of the Act of 1997” shall be substituted for “the provision concerned of Part II, III or IV”.

In subsection (1)(a)—

(a) “or section 4 of the Act of 2001” shall be inserted after “(other than subsection (4))”, and

(b) “or the Act of 1997 or that a specified act was not done” shall be inserted after “Part II, III or IV”.

(1) In subsection (1), “and shall, if the copy is furnished to it pursuant to section 21 (4) or 23(2) of the Act of 2001,” shall be inserted after “to do so”.

(2) In subsection (2)(c), the following subparagraph shall be substituted for subparagraph (ii):

“(ii) in addition—

(I) if the report aforesaid includes a determination that the office holder or other member is continuing to contravene this Act or that the specified act concerned is continuing and the Committee is satisfied that the contravention or act has continued up to the date of the motion for the resolution concerned under subsection (1), or

(II) if the Committee is satisfied, in a case to which section 25 of the Act of 2001 applies, that the office holder or other member concerned has not, up to the date aforesaid, complied with section 21 or 23, as may be appropriate,

until such time (if any) after the expiration of the period specified pursuant to subparagraph (i) in the resolution as he or she takes the steps specified in the resolution (being the steps specified in the report) to secure compliance by him or her with this Act or the cesser of the act or, as the case may be, the office holder or other member furnishes to the Commission the document specified in section 21 or 23, as may be appropriate.”.

(3) The following subsection shall be inserted after subsection (2):

“(2A)  (a) Notwithstanding subsection (4), where the action specified in a motion for a resolution under subsection (1) is or includes that specified in subsection (2)(c), it may also, subject to compliance with the conditions specified in paragraph (b), include the withholding from the office holder or other member concerned of so much of the annual sum by way of salary payable to him or her under the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act, 1938 , as may be specified in the resolution.

(b) The conditions referred to in paragraph (a) are:

(i) that the Committee concerned is of opinion that the act or contravention to which the motion relates was done or made intentionally and was of a grave nature,

(ii) that the withholding is reasonable in all the circumstances,

(iii) that the amount of the annual sum specified in the resolution does not exceed the amount thereof payable in respect of the period of suspension from the service of the House concerned specified in the resolution.”.

In subsection (1), the following paragraph shall be substituted for paragraph (e):

“(e) When the Clerk receives a statement under paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) or section 30 or corrects an error in or amends a register established by him or her under section 6, he or she shall—

(i) in the case of a statement under paragraph (a), (b), (c) or (d) relating to an additional interest, furnish a copy of it to the Commission and (if it is a statement of a Minister of the Government or a Minister of State) the Taoiseach,

(ii) in the case of a statement under section 30, furnish a copy of it to the Commission,

(iii) in the case of a correction or amendment, notify the Commission of it.”.

In subsection (2), “or made to it under section 4 of the Act of 2001” shall be inserted after “(other than subsection (4) thereof)”.

(1) The following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (4):

“(4A) A Committee or the Commission may, for sufficient reason if it considers it appropriate to do so, arrange for the examination of a person at any place in or outside the State by, in the case of a Committee, a member of the Committee, a member of the staff of the Committee or any other person and, in the case of the Commission, by a member of the Commission, a member of the staff of the Commission or any other person and may receive, in such form as it may determine, the evidence of the person taken at the examination, and the relevant rules of court relating to evidence in proceedings in the High Court shall apply in relation to the matters aforesaid with any necessary modifications.

(4B) In relation to the matters specified in subsection (1) and (2) and, in so far as they relate to a Committee or the Commission, subsection (4A), a Committee or the Commission shall have all such powers, rights and privileges as are vested in the High Court on the occasion of an action and, in relation to the matters specified in subsection (4A), in so far as they relate to a person conducting an examination pursuant to that subsection, that person shall have all the powers, rights and privileges aforesaid.”.

(2) In subsection (6)(b), “or the Act of 1997 or the specified act” shall be inserted after “this Act”.

(3) The following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (8):

“(8) A person whose evidence has been, is being or is to be given before—

(a) a Committee or the Commission,

(b) an inquiry officer, or

(c) a person for the purposes of an examination by him or her pursuant to subsection (4A),

or who produces or sends a document to a person referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) or who is directed by the chairman of a Committee or the chairperson of the Commission or requested by a person referred to in paragraph (b) or (c), for the purposes referred to in that paragraph, to give evidence or produce a document to the Committee or the Commission or to the person referred to in paragraph (b) or (c) or to attend before the Committee or the Commission or the person and there to give evidence or produce a document shall be entitled to the same privileges and immunities in respect of those matters as a witness before the High Court in respect of evidence.”.

(4) In subsection (11)(c), “,advisers, agents” shall be inserted after “members”.

(5) The following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (11):

“(11A) Utterances made by a person conducting an examination pursuant to subsection (4A), or an inquiry officer, for the purpose of the performance of his or her functions under this Act, shall be absolutely privileged and such utterances and documents prepared by those persons for the purposes of such performance shall be absolutely privileged wherever published subsequently.

(11B) Utterances made otherwise than at meetings of a Committee or the Commission of members, advisers, officials or agents of the Committee or the Commission for the purposes of the performance of their functions under this Act or the Act of 2001 shall be absolutely privileged and those utterances and documents of such advisers, officials and agents connected with a Committee or the Commission or its functions shall be absolutely privileged wherever published subsequently.”.

In subsection (2)(b)(i), “section 29(1)” shall be substituted for “section 29(2)”.