Callely gets two-week deadline to explain expenses issue

IVOR CALLELY faces a public grilling over the latest expenses controversy after a Seanad watchdog last night launched an investigation into his alleged use of fake receipts to claim up to €3,000.

Mr Callely and three other senators have been given two weeks to explain issues surrounding expenses to the Seanad Committee on Members’ Interests, which last night demanded “detailed statements” by 10am on August 23.

The committee met for more than five hours yesterday and decided not to take what they called “the major step” of referring complaints against Mr Callely to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

But committee member Senator Denis O’Donovan of Fianna Fáil said referral to the DPP “may or may not be used” following a probe which is likely to be heard in public.

The committee said it wants to proceed with the investigation as quickly as possible, with two members flying home from holidays for yesterday’s meeting.

“I wish we didn’t have to go down this road but very serious allegations have emerged. For everybody’s sake we would rather see these issues resolved sooner rather than later,” said Mr O’Donovan.

A similar probe last month resulted in Mr Callely’s 20-day suspension for misrepresenting his normal place of residence to claim travel expenses from his holiday home in Cork instead of his Dublin address.

As pressure mounts on Mr Callely to resign from his €80,000-a-year job, he has insisted that invoices from a company that ceased trading were submitted in “good faith” to claim €3,000 for phone equipment.

He has already been suspended by Fianna Fáil and following a meeting yesterday, a sub-committee of the party’s national executive agreed it would launch an inquiry, meaning he will be subject to two inquiries.

In the Seanad, complaints were also made to the committee against Larry Butler and Ann Ormonde, who have been given two weeks to explain allegations that they claimed travel allowances for addresses not listed as their official residences.

The committee agreed unanimously that Mr O’Donovan had no conflict of interest in relation to his law firm acting for Mr Callely in the purchase of his controversial west Cork home as revealed in the Irish Examiner.