Politicians warned not to be complacent about corruption

THE chairman of the Oireachtas watchdog on ethics said yesterday that Ireland’s record on corruption in public office left “no room for complacency”.

High Court judge Matthew Smith said that he was satisfied that we do not have a major problem with corruption. However, he warned the latest Transparency International corruption index still showed that we were perceived “as being more corrupt than a number of member countries of the EU and, indeed, others who are our trade competitors”.

His introduction to the annual report of the Standards in Public Office Commission for 2003 intimated that the trustworthiness of our political leaders was a major issue.

“Trust in our leaders and in the institutions of the State is the bedrock on which our parliamentary democracy is founded.

“Rebuilding that trust should be seen as an urgent priority and should be led, in words and actions, by those whom we elect, whether at local or national level,” Judge Smith said.

He added we had reached a stage in this country where it was no longer acceptable to merely aspire to meeting the requirements of openness, accountability and transparency.

“As the work of the tribunals continues there is need for reassurance that events which are being investigated and information which is being revealed are confined to recent history and that resonances of same are not to be found in our current public administration,” the judge added.

The report also refers to the tax clearance obligation for Oireachtas members, which was implemented for the first time at the time of the 2002 General Election. In this context, it gives an account of the position of Limerick West TD Michael Collins who is being investigated over the documentation he supplied.

It also highlights that delay on the part of the Minister for Finance in bringing up to 250 state-sponsored bodies within the scope of the Ethics Act.

The report also gives detailed breakdowns of political party spending and funding. Fianna Fáil received the largest amount in donations during 2003, a total of €275,000 from 196 donors. The Labour Party was next, receiving slightly over €50,000 while Fine Gael received a modest total of €25,000.