This is the first time I have been in the Seanad since the death of two Members. I offer my deepest sympathy on the death of two fine Senators, Senator Gordon Wilson and Senator Seán Fallon. I offer you, a Chathaoirligh, my best wishes. I know you will discharge your onerous duties extremely well, as you did in your capacity as Leas-Chathaoirleach.
The Ethics in Public Office Bill is important legislation in which Members of the Oireachtas have taken a particular interest. It was keenly debated in the Dáil and I look forward to the debate in the Upper House. The Bill is about promoting a more open approach to public office by those who serve the public. At its heart is the provision whereby elected representatives and key public servants will declare their interests.
People who hold public office — politicians, Ministers, civil servants, those running our State companies — are in positions of public trust and are guardians of the public interest. That is a cornerstone of our administrative and political systems. We can be proud of the values of public service which have characterised those systems. In an increasingly complex business and financial environment, the mechanisms to identify and deal with potential conflicts of interest, which this Bill provides, are an important safeguard that those values of public service will continue to prevail.
The Bill creates the framework where the public can have confidence that those who work in the public's name are working on behalf of the public interest. This Bill will show the public that people in positions of public influence keep their public duties and their personal private interests as separate.
The Bill provides for a register of interests of people in key public positions — Oireachtas Members and Ministers; the Attorney General; senior civil and public servants; board members and senior executives of State companies; and Ministers' special advisers. It sets out new rules in relation to acceptance of gifts by office holders. It introduces greater openness and accountability into personal appointments by office holders. It provides for an independent commission to oversee key provisions of the Bill and to investigate complaints.
The central provisions of the Bill relate to the disclosure of private interests where these could give rise to a conflict of interest for people in key positions in Irish public life. The Bill provides for two types of disclosure: first, an annual statement of interests and, second, ad hoc declarations where a conflict of interest could directly arise in the performance of one's official duties.
The model of disclosure has common features for each category covered under the Bill, with certain differences reflecting such factors as Executive versus purely parliamentary duties, the specific or wide remit of the office held and whether the interests are those of a private citizen or someone in public life. Under the Bill, Oireachtas Members must set out annual statements of their interests in a public register. The interests to be declared in the register are as follows: outside income, shares and directorships, land, but not the family home, gifts other than personal gifts, public contracts and work as a paid lobbyist.
These interests are similar to those listed in other Parliaments. Interests below a threshold value do not have to be disclosed, that is, assets or shares worth less than £10,000, income under £2,000 or gifts worth under £500. In no case is disclosure of the amount of income or the value of the interest required.
In addition, when speaking or voting in the Houses of the Oireachtas, Members will be required to make a formal declaration if the issue involves a potential conflict of interest for themselves or a connected person, that is, a close relative or business partner. A simple statement that the Member has an interest is sufficient.
As people holding Executive positions, Ministers and other office holders are required to make a more comprehensive declaration of interests than ordinary Members. In addition to the annual declaration of their own personal interests which, in common with other Members, forms part of the public register, Ministers are required to make an additional private declaration of the interests of their spouses and children which are known to them and which could have a bearing on their public duties.
The Taoiseach and the independent commission must be informed where a Minister proposes to exercise a function of his or her office which could potentially benefit themselves, their immediate family or business associates, or benefit another Minister. These provisions are to ensure there is no inside track for people connected to Ministers.
Senior public servants and members and senior executives of State boards are required to make annual declarations, which are private, in respect of their own interests or interests of which they know of their spouse and children which could have a bearing on their public duties. They are likewise required to make once-off declarations where a potential conflict of interest, involving themselves or close connections, could arise in the performance of official duties.
Furthermore, they are generally prohibited, as a term of their conditions of appointment or employment, from performing a function where there is a conflict of interest unless there are compelling reasons for doing so. In such cases these reasons must be given in writing to the relevant authority and made available to the independent commission. These rules are based on the existing guidelines which operate for senior executives and board members of State companies.
In relation to where disclosure requirements differ, those in executive positions, such as Ministers, public servants and board members of State companies, are required to make the most comprehensive statements of interests. Their annual declarations shall include those interests of a spouse or children which are known to them which could have a potential bearing on their public duties. Ordinary Members of the Oireachtas are not required to make annual statements in respect of the interests of their spouses or children.
All Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, including office holders, are required to make a public disclosure of their personal interests, as are senior special advisers personally appointed by Ministers. The public disclosure requirement of Members is fully in line with the requirements of registers of Members' interests abroad. Those with general remits, such as Ministers and Oireachtas Members, are required to make a comprehensive listing of all their personal interests, while those with a specific remit, for example, those working in a specific Department or State company, are only required to declare those interests in their annual statements which could have a bearing on their duties in that Department or State body. All other annual statements by groups covered by the Bill will be confidential and overseen by an independent commission.
The Bill is careful to strike a balance between serving the public interest through disclosure and respecting the legitimate right to personal privacy. Statements which are made by Ministers, senior public servants or board members in respect of interests of a spouse or child will be confidential. These statements will be made available to the independent commission. Any unauthorised disclosure of such information will constitute a criminal offence.
The Bill is not just about disclosure of interests. Apart from addressing the separation of public and private interests, the Bill also deals with gifts to office holders and with the appointment of personal advisers and assistants by Ministers. The Bill provides that any gift worth over £500 given to a Minister, their spouse or child by virtue of that ministerial office becomes the property of the State.
As regards personal appointments by office holders, for example, personal assistants or special advisers, the Bill provides that these will be temporary and will cease when the office holder leaves office. The Government will be precluded from appointing such persons to permanent positions in the Civil Service. This gives legal effect to what is already established practice. The Bill also provides for publication of details of all such personal appointments.
An independent commission will oversee key provisions of the Bill in respect of office holders, special advisers, public servants, including civil servants, and senior executives of State boards. The commission will undertake the investigation of complaints of possible contraventions in respect of these groups. The commission will comprise the Comptroller and Auditor General, the Ombudsman, the Ceann Comhairle, the Clerk of the Dáil and the Clerk of the Seanad.
Due to the constitutional independence of the Houses of the Oireachtas in regulating their own affairs, the Bill provides for special overseeing arrangements in respect of ordinary Members. Select committees of each House will oversee the provisions of the Bill in relation to ordinary Members of that House and will report to that House. The select committees may recommend a range of sanctions for any Oireachtas Member found in breach of the Bill. The commission and select committees have power to investigate complaints and act on their own initiative, backed up by comprehensive powers to summon witnesses. They will also issue guidelines on compliance with the provisions of the Bill and may provide advice in individual cases. Part II of the Bill, which covers the Houses of the Oireachtas, is brought into being in respect of each House by a resolution of the House itself.
The Bill is comprehensive but fair. It promotes openness by elected representatives, but respects the privacy of third parties. It sets out unequivocal requirements to be met where a conflict of interest may arise. It establishes effective support and investigative mechanisms.
I wish to draw the attention of the House to certain minor textual corrections which I seek to have made by the Clerk under the direction of the Cathaoirleach. The heading PART IV, THE PUBLIC SERVICE on page 23 is in the wrong place. It should be placed on page 22, that is, before rather than after section 16. Following the deletion of paragraph (d) in section 22 on Report Stage in the Dáil, we need to remove the reference to that paragraph by correcting subsections (2) and (3) to fully take account of that deletion. On page 48 in the Second Schedule, for the sake of textual clarity, we need to move the text at line 47 and to the end of the paragraph under the (b) in line 36.
I commend the Bill to the House.