1.1 The Commission was established by section 21 of the Ethics Act, as amended by section 2 of the Standards Act, as brought into operation by the Standards in Public Office Act 2001 (Commencement) Order 2001. The members of the Commission for the purposes of this investigation are:
Mr Justice Daniel O'Keeffe (Chairperson)
Mr Seamus McCarthy, Comptroller and Auditor General
Mr Peter Tyndall, Ombudsman
Mr Peter Finnegan, Clerk Assistant of Dáil Éireann
Ms Deirdre Lane, Clerk of Seanad Éireann
Mr Jim O'Keeffe, former member of Dáil Éireann
1.2 The Commission's role, briefly, is to supervise the operation of the Ethics Acts in so far as they concern office holders, an Attorney General who is not a member of a House of the Oireachtas, Ministerial special advisers, designated directors and employees of specified public bodies and certain civil servants; to provide guidance and advice on the applicability of the Ethics Acts and to carry out investigations into possible contraventions of the Ethics Acts and/or Part 15 of the Local Government Act.
1.3 The investigative function of the Commission is a formalised procedure giving its Chairman statutory powers that include the power to compel the attendance of witnesses and to procure documents or other material. The Ethics Acts oblige the Commission to hold sittings for the purpose of investigations. The detailed procedure determined by the Commission for the conduct of investigations is available on the Commission's website at www.sipo.gov.ie.
1.4 Having carried out an investigation under section 23 of the Ethics Act to determine whether there has been a contravention of the Ethics Acts or of Part 15 of the Local Government Act, the Commission, pursuant to section 24 of the Ethics Act and section 180 of the Local Government Act, is required to prepare a report and to furnish a copy of the report to:
· the person the subject of the investigation,
· a person who made a complaint,
· where a report relates to the Chief Executive of a local authority, to the Cathaoirleach of the authority,
· the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
1.5 In addition, section 24(2) of the Ethics Act provides that, where the Commission is of the opinion that a person the subject of an investigation may have committed an offence relating to the performance of his or her functions, it shall prepare a report in writing in relation to the matter and furnish it to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
1.6 This report, under section 24 of the Ethics Act, sets out the findings of the Commission together with its determinations in relation to:
(a) whether there has been a contravention of Part 15 of the Local Government Act, and whether the contravention is continuing,
(b) in case the determination is that there has not been a contravention of Part 15, whether the Commission is of opinion that the complaint made was frivolous or vexatious or that there were no reasonable grounds for it, and
(c) in case the determination is that there has been a contravention of Part 15 -
(i) if the determination is that the contravention is continuing, the steps required to be taken to secure compliance with Part 15, and the period of time within which such steps should be taken,
(ii) whether the contravention or act was committed inadvertently, negligently, recklessly or intentionally,
(iii) whether the contravention or act was, in all the circumstances, a serious or a minor matter, and
(iv) whether the person being investigated acted in good faith and in the belief that his or her action was in accordance with guidelines published or advice given in writing by the Commission under section 25 of the Ethics Act.