Paschal Donohoe reflects on 'really demanding' period of political career
Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe: 'I am a credible and committed centrist and I always have been, and always will be.' Picture: Moya Nolan
In the 16 years he has been in national politics and the seven years he has occupied one of the two finance ministries, Paschal Donohoe has only once seen his personal integrity come under focus.
That was January of this year when the ‘Mr Nice Guy’ of Irish politics came under pressure over undeclared general election spending on posters.
Following reports in magazine and then the six weeks ago, Mr Donohoe gave a hastily convened press conference outside Merrion Square on a Sunday afternoon.
Donohoe presented himself to the media to address allegations that he was subject to an investigation by the Standards in Public Office Commission (Sipo).
The investigation was initiated by a complaint from a member of the public and followed several weeks of media queries about his election campaigns in 2016 and 2020.
His failure to properly declare work carried out by a third-party company became the subject of intense political and media scrutiny for almost two weeks.
Over a matter of roughly €1,000, the president of the Eurogroup of finance ministers was in a dogfight to save his career. For the first time in his national political career, which commenced in 2007, Donohoe’s own personal conduct was in question.
Donohoe was forced to apologise and submit an amended financial statement to the political ethics watchdog after revelations that he did not correctly account for expenses paid for his election seven years ago.
In his first major interview since the controversy, Donohoe speaks candidly of the personal toll the saga has had on him.
“I regret so much what happened, I do," he says. "I'm working to meet the requirements that Sipo will have in relation to it.
"I looked back on my time in public office, and while I did find this really demanding, it was demanding in a different way, because of course, it was about me, and that posed a unique challenge to me.
He “absolutely regrets” that at each point in his two elections, which were at the heart of this controversy, that he “did not better understand and appreciate” the exact accounting for election expenses.
“The declaration of expenses for two election campaigns should have been more accurate,” he says. "And that is my responsibility. I don't want to diminish that.
"I became embroiled in an understandable focus that lasted over two weeks.
"I just want to reiterate that I acknowledge that was an important and serious issue, which I know Sipo will now consider.”
Did he ever consider that his position was becoming untenable and that his resignation was becoming necessary?
He doesn't answer the question straight on, but says he was very grateful for the considerable support offered to him by his Government colleagues, which allowed him to go into the Dáil and argue for proportionality on his mistakes.
The day before this interview, the respected columnist and former Government advisor Gerard Howlin took direct aim at Donohoe and Fine Gael, describing it as a “fake right-wing party” which has been dragged towards the left wing of politics by the likes of Sinn Féin.
Donohoe, a self-described “committed centrist” responds by accepting that the centre ground in Irish politics has moved to the left, but has done so in response to dramatic crises, such as the pandemic.
He also defends his record of managing the public finances, despite them ballooning from about €50bn six years ago to €90bn now.
“I am a credible and committed centrist and I always have been, and always will be,” he states.
“Number one, experiencing the aftershocks of the global financial crisis.
"The greatest challenge that I faced was the intense expectations in the aftermath of exiting an external aid programme and our economy beginning to grow again,” he says of the 2010 to 2013 Troika bailout.
He says meeting those expectations “did result in a movement of the centre”.
“And likewise, there's little doubt at all that the aftermath of covid has reframed how our society views our Government,” he says.
But he then comes the defence of his role in all of it, saying: “Do you remember the early phase of dealing with covid and me making the case for the fact that our books would have to balance again?
"I'm the politician who, in the run-up to the 2020 election, argued that we have to have a budget that didn't have tax reductions and social welfare increases because of Brexit.
“And I'm also the politician who's got our national finances to surplus twice, and made deposits into a rainy-day fund twice.
"So I accept the centre has moved, but I see the centre moving as a response to the seismic events our society and economy has confronted.”
Mr Donohoe highlights how he has managed the exit from the hugely expensive pandemic unemployment payment and the wage subsidy scheme without the "sky falling in", even though Opposition parties were demanding the retention of such schemes.
The interview concludes with the same question he has been asked for years.
Do you want to lead your party?
The answer is a swift and resolute no.
“My answer to your question is still the same from the first day,” he says.
"And the office that I've attained and been able to try to do my best in is more than enough for me now."
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