Nepotism should be made a criminal offence – Hamilton report

Justice Minister Helen McEntee: A spokesman for the department said the reference to nepotism falls within the general understanding of conflicts of interest and would include preferential treatment of a person based on identity for positions or in the awarding of contracts. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

Consideration should be given to making nepotism a criminal offence, a new Government report will suggest today, but not for politicians who appoint family members to roles in their offices.

A report from a review group, headed by retired judge James Hamilton called for a further strengthening of the criminal law including the possibility of amending the Ethics Acts to create offences in such areas as nepotism.

This would be in the hiring or contracting of elected and appointed public officials, preferential treatment based on a person’s identity, and the improper use of influence. 

"This recommendation may be carried forward in the proposed review, consolidation and reform of ethics in public office legislation,” the report stated.

A spokesman for the Department of Justice said the reference to nepotism falls within the general understanding of conflicts of interest and would include preferential treatment of a person based on identity for positions or in the awarding of contracts.

However, the review group was not necessarily considering the appointment of family members by TDs and senators, which is a frequent subject of controversy.

The spokesman said the review group was not talking about “situations where a role is one that requires a significant level of personal trust and knowledge or familiarity of the appointee because of the personal and direct service required by the role”.

“In such instances, personal trust and knowledge or familiarity, can have a significant bearing on how the role is carried out because of the personal nature of the service such as a family member working in the office of an elected representative,” the review group said.

The review group also recommends that the independence and capacity of the Standards in Public Office (SIPO) be enhanced by ensuring that resources allocated to the Ombudsman are ring-fenced for use, for that purpose alone.

"The rationale behind this recommendation is that improving resourcing to SIPO will enable it fulfil its mandate. At present, current staffing levels at SIPO mean that an analysis of submitted returns is not possible,” the report adds.