Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 January 2018
1691. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government his plans to amend the Standards in Public Office, SIPO, law on foreign donations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [55013/17]
View answerThe Electoral Act 1997 (as amended) provides the statutory framework for dealing with political donations and sets out the regulatory regime covering a wide range of issues such as the funding of political parties; the reimbursement of election expenses; the establishment of election expenditure limits; the disclosure of election expenditure; the setting of limits on permissible donations; the prohibition of certain donations; the disclosure of donations and the registration of third parties who accept donations given for political purposes which exceed €100. The Act also provides for the independent supervision of this regime by the Standards in Public Office Commission.
Under the Act, political donations given by foreign individuals or organisations are expressly prohibited irrespective of the amount of the donation.
I have no proposals to amend the Electoral Acts in relation to foreign donations at this point in time. However, electoral law, including the provisions of the Electoral Act 1997, is subject to ongoing review in order to ensure that a robust and modern legal framework is maintained as a cornerstone in support of the operation of our democratic system.
