More than €7,000 in expenses from TDs and senators did not have supporting evidence, audit finds
An audit report by the Houses of the Oireachtas on the payment of more than €286,000 under the public representation allowance to a sample of politicians during 2023 detected payments totalling €7,088 for which insufficient supporting documentation had been shown.
Seven TDs and senators were found to have claimed expenses totalling more than €7,000 for which they could not provide supporting evidence to show the payments were for allowable expenditure, according to the findings of an audit.
An audit report by the Houses of the Oireachtas on the payment of more than €286,000 under the public representation allowance to a sample of politicians during 2023 detected payments totalling €7,088 for which insufficient supporting documentation had been shown.
The previous year’s audit had detected payments for ineligible expenses totalling €1,524 to three Oireachtas members, which was the lowest level of disallowed claims under the allowance in recent years.
The amount of ineligible expenses peaked in 2017, when claims totalling almost €10,000 by six TDs and senators were disallowed.
The latest report by independent auditors commissioned by the Houses of the Oireachtas confirmed that all the money had subsequently been refunded to the State.
It also noted that a total of €115,593 in claims by the seven politicians were considered eligible and approved.
The audit was carried out to determine if TDs and senators had provided valid evidence of vouchers, receipts, and bills in relation to the amounts claimed for allowable categories of expenses.
A sample audit of 10% of Oireachtas members — 22 TDs and senators chosen randomly — is carried out annually.
The largest amount of expenses claimed which was disallowed was €3,060 by the then Cavan-Monaghan TD, Pauline Tully, who is now a Sinn Féin member of the Seanad.
The second-highest level of claims deemed ineligible was €1,729 by her party colleague, former Tipperary TD Martin Browne. The third-largest amount of €1,256 was by Fianna Fáil senator Fiona O’Loughlin.
Former Green Party TD Francis Noel Duffy was found to have wrongly claimed €470. It was the second year in a row that the former Dublin South-West TD, and husband of then Green Party deputy leader Catherine Martin, was audited and found to have made ineligible expenses claims. The 2022 audit found Mr Duffy had expenses of €135 disallowed.
Smaller ineligible expenses were also claimed by former Green Party TD Patrick Costello (€266), minister for state for migration Colm Brophy (€168), and former Fine Gael minister Richard Bruton (€140).
The report revealed that €5,793 worth of expense claims was disallowed as the cost did not fall within an allowable expenditure category.
Another €735 was wrongly claimed because the claimant had not correctly apportioned their cost of utilities, advertising, and newsletter distributions with other politicians who featured in the same newsletter.
A further €560 was disallowed because insufficient supporting documentation was provided for the expenditure incurred. The latest audit found 15 elected representatives were able to show receipts and other relevant documentation in relation to €279,124 claimed in expenses.
They included current government ministers Jack Chambers and Dara Calleary, former minister Heather Humphreys, as well as government chief whip Mary Butler. Others were Fianna Fáil TDs Willie O’Dea and John McGuinness, along with Independent TD Michael Lowry.
The public representation allowance allows for expenditure on rent, rates, and other charges in relation to running an office and related utilities.
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