On prevailing side: this member voted with the winning side in 439 of 441 decisive votes (2 abstentions excluded). Read it as a government-or-opposition indicator rather than a measure of influence — the figure is near 100% for members supporting the government of the day and near 0% for those opposing it.
This is the point of the site: contributions keep the party held on the day, not the one held now.
| Party | Recorded as | Contributions | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| FG | Fine Gael | 5,748 | 2020-02-20 – 2024-09-18 |
Membership spells on record: FG 2007-05-24–2011-02-01 · FG 2011-02-25–2016-03-09 · FG 2016-03-10–2020-01-14 · FG 2020-02-08–2024-11-08
The Minister has recused himself from making any decisions with regard to SIPO or ethics policy. He can, of course, answer questions about it as can I or anyone. The transfer of functions, of responsibilities, is a legal document which has to be prepared and signed. The Attorney General is working on that now.
On the matter of Coillte and the Irish Strategic Forestry Fund, I am aware it is of concern up and down the country. I have heard what farmers, the Irish Wildlife Trust and others have to say about it and I am sure we can make time available through the Business Committee, whether here in the Chamber or in the relevant committee, to discuss this matter. I confirm it was not signed off by Cabinet. Coillte is a State-owned enterprise and its board makes its own decisions. There was no memo for information to Cabinet …
-----which is ultimately a political body, into a court of law-----
-----nor should we try to take away the powers of the Standards in Public Office Commission-----
-----which is the body that is tasked with making the decisions in this regard.
To make one final point, accountability is important. It should apply to all of us - the Government, the Opposition and Independents. What is good for the goose is good for the gander and I invite Deputy McDonald to make a statement on the Dowdall donation. Was it a personal donation, as she reported it, or was it a donation to her party as she now claims? Will she also explain, and perhaps her party treasurer might want to make a statement to the House on this, why-----
-----there was a two-year gap in accounting for a €7,000 payment to a British polling firm? I would like to invite Deputy Doherty and Deputy McDonald to make statements to the House with regard to those matters.
No. There will be no statements on Davos.
I saw plenty of Members in the Opposition nodding when I said I believe that accountability applies to everyone - Government and Opposition and Independents - but it is clear that Deputy McDonald does not think so.
She should be willing to make a statement in this House-----
-----to explain the Dowdall donation - the €1,000 that she declared to be a personal donation and now claims was a donation to the party but has still not returned, even though she should.
We do not have a statement in the House from Sinn Féin in relation to the two-year gap-----
-----between a payment it made to a UK polling company of €7,000-----
-----that was only accounted for when prompted by media query. Why should accountability not apply to all of us equally when it comes to these matters?
When it comes to matters of ethics and standards, it should apply equally.
I have confirmed with the Whip that we can commit to a Dáil debate on the issue of Coillte. It has to be scheduled but we can do that. I am happy for that to take place. On the other matter, I think the proposal of the Ceann Comhairle is a reasonable one. The Minister, Deputy Donohoe, will make a statement. Members can then ask questions and he will reply to those questions. I do not think that a politically charged Chamber such as this is the place for-----
-----cross-examination and doing the work that is rightfully the work of an independent body such as the standards commission.
I can confirm that the Government decided today that we will fund a scheme to carry out necessary fire safety, water ingress and structural safety works to apartments and duplexes that need that work done. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, announced the scheme only in the last couple of hours. It will benefit tens of thousands of people. It is not just about the financial distress; there is also enormous emotional distress for people if they live in a building and the alarm goes off when the fire safety works h…
I acknowledge that the Deputy raised this matter on a number of occasions in the House last year and previously. I can confirm that it will be 100% redress, that there will be retrospection and that we will be establishing a new independent building regulator to try to make sure this does not happen again. That said, there will be checks and balances. It will not just be a case of people or management companies putting in a claim. It will have to be certified work, legitimately done, and all the rest of it, so ther…
Coillte is a State-owned enterprise. It is independent and its board makes its own commercial decisions. This decision was made by Coillte, not by the Government or by the Minister, Deputy McConalogue. The Deputy asked why we do not use some of our own funds to invest in a project like this and the answer is that we are. Coillte is partnering with our own sovereign wealth fund, the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, and also Gresham House to establish this fund, so we are also investing in this fund.