Developer failed to disclose donations to Fianna Fáil on time

A TIPPERARY businessman who made an unsuccessful bid to win a Seanad seat two years ago failed to disclose that he donated €17,000 to Fianna Fáil and its members in the run-up to the 2007 general election, according to a new report from the State’s ethics watchdog.

The Standards in Public Office (Sipo), chaired by Mr Justice Matthew Smith, yesterday issued the report on donations made by Patrick O’Meara, a developer, from Coalbrook, Thurles. It found he contravened the Electoral Act 1997 by failing to furnish a donation statement by the statutory deadline of January 31st, 2008.

As he had later complied by providing a full statement, Sipo therefore concluded it would not refer the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions or the gardaí.

Mr O’Meara’s statement disclosed he made 18 separate donations totalling €17,635 to Fianna Fáil and its members in 2007. It also emerged that five of the 11 donations that were above the disclosure threshold of €635 had not been included in their donation statements by the general election candidates who received them. Mr O’Meara’s statement said he had made donations of €1,000 each to Senator Cecelia Keaveney (Donegal North East); Senator Lisa McDonald (Wexford); Deputy Michael Fitzpatrick (Kildare North) and to Councillor Patrick Boshell for an election fund on behalf of Deputy Thomas Byrne (Meath East). He also stated that he had paid a €2,000 cheque to Councillor Tom Fleming, an unsuccessful candidate in Kerry South, in the 2007 elections.

Ms Keaveney and Mr Byrne told the commission that the money had not been donated to them but to the local Fianna Fáil organisations. Mr Fitzpatrick said the €1,000 he received was towards 10 tickets for a race night at Punchestown. As the cost associated with each ticket was €75, the net value of the tickets was €25 each, or €250 in total. That was below the €635 threshold for disclosure.

In correspondence with Sipo, Ms McDonald said she had received the €1,000 from Mr O’Meara as a non-political gift in December 2006. Mr O’Meara was subsequently asked to make a new statement and a statutory declaration reflecting that it was a personal gift of €1,000, and not a political donation. When contacted yesterday, Ms McDonald said Mr O’Meara, whom she knew, had called to her home in December 2006 where there was a dinner after the recent birth of her child.

“Presumably, [the gift] was for my newborn child,” she said.

In relation to the €2,000 donation to councillor Fleming, Sipo expressed concern about the length of time it took to resolve the issue. It first wrote to him in May 2008 but did not receive full responses to its queries until last month, some nine months later.

Yesterday’s report outlined correspondence between Sipo and Mr councillor Fleming and his solicitors. A letter written by Mr Justice Smith to the councillor in November 2008 stated if he did not arrange a meeting to explain the donation, Sipo would be required to consider if the councillor had knowingly furnished a false or misleading donation statement, and if so, whether to refer this matter to the DPP or Garda.Once full replies were submitted, Sipo concluded Mr Fleming failed to include the €2,000 cheque from Mr O’Meara in his donation statement. But it was satisfied he “did not knowingly furnish a false or misleading donation statement”.

It said it would not refer the matter to the DPP. It expressed concerns regarding the operation of Mr Fleming’s donations account.