FF to repay cost of Fahey letters

Fianna Fáil is to repay the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in the region of €1,700 after a State body ruled that the Minister of State, Mr Frank Fahey, acted inappropriately by using Government facilities for constituency work.

It is the second time this week a Fianna Fáil minister has acknowledged breaching ethics guidelines during the run-up to the local and European elections.

The Standards in Public Office Commission, the State ethics watchdog, found that Mr Fahey did not have regard to an official code of conduct by sending invitations to a party fund-raiser on Government-headed notepaper.

The letters related to a campaign event for Mr Seán Ó Neachtain, Fianna Fáil's European candidate in the North West constituency.

In a brief statement released yesterday, Mr Fahey said he "acknowledged" the conclusions of the commission and was arranging for the money to be reimbursed to the Department.

However, he did not apologise for his actions in the statement. This is in contrast to the Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, who this week apologised to the Dáil for ordering departmental staff to prepare information manuals for Fianna Fáil candidates. A spokesman for the Minister, however, said Mr Fahey had apologised in an RTÉ interview some weeks previously and did not need to reassert this.

While the cost of Mr Fahey's use of Government facilities has yet to be calculated, sources estimate it will be less than €2,000.

Fianna Fáil is to pay a further €2,590.40 to the Department of Education for Mr Dempsey's actions.

The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, publicly criticised both Mr Fahey and Mr Dempsey last month.

Mr Ahern said Mr Fahey had originally believed he had not done anything wrong.

"I made it clear to the Minister of State when I discussed the matter with him that the use of departmental notepaper for such correspondence is not permitted ... He believed there was a distinction because it was his constituency office. However, there is not and the standard is clear," the Taoiseach told the Dáil last month.

The commission also said yesterday it will not launch an investigation into Mr Fahey's actions.

If the value of the benefit of alleged incorrect behaviour by an office holder is less than €12,700, the commission has discretion to decide whether to begin an investigation.