Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 1 May 2024
124. Deputy Cormac Devlin asked the Minister for Finance to detail the arrangements in place for where an employee of the Department, and each organisation under its aegis, becomes elected or co-opted to a local authority; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19574/24]
View answerCivil servant political activity in my Department is administered in line with Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform Circular 09/2009 “Civil Servants and Political Activity”. Civil servants who are members of Local Authorities may be given special leave without pay, up to a maximum of 12 days per annum, to attend full meetings of the Local Authorities where the meetings are held during normal business hours. In addition, civil servants who are members of Local Authorities may be given special leave without pay, up to a maximum of 5 days per annum, to attend further Local Authority activities, other than meetings of the full public body, that take place during normal business hours. Civil servants are not permitted to engage in politics unless they are:
• Civil servants in the craft, state industrial and manual grades and grades below clerical grades,
• Clerical grades and non-industrial grades with salary maxima equal to or below the Clerical Officer maximum who have obtained permission from their Department to engage in politics,
• Special advisers and the personal appointees of Ministers, Ministers of State, Parliamentary office holders and the Attorney General holding temporary unestablished positions, and
• Persons expressly permitted to do so by the terms of their employment.
The bodies under the aegis of my Department have advised as follows:
The Central Bank has a framework in place for managing actual or perceived conflicts of interest. Its Staff Code of Ethics, which applies to all employees, includes specific provisions around political involvement and secondary employment. The Central Bank is an apolitical institution and staff are required to protect its apolitical position at all times. Staff must not engage in any activity which could call into question this apolitical status or risk the Bank being drawn into any political or public controversy. In addition, any staff member wishing to take up any form of secondary employment (regardless of the duration of the role or the level of remuneration attached) must obtain permission in advance from their manager. This permission may be declined (or subsequently withdrawn) if it is considered that the proposed secondary employment has the potential to create a conflict of interest or is otherwise inconsistent with a staff member’s role as an employee of the Bank. The Bank’s framework applies to the staff that it assigns to the Investor Compensation Company which is also a body under my Department’s aegis.
The Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman is guided by the Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour and Circular 09/2009 "Civil Servants and Political Activity".
In relation to the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council, the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2012 outlines the arrangements that apply where a member or an employee of the Council becomes elected or co-opted to a local authority. Specifically, section 7 of the Schedule to the Act states that where a Council member or employee is nominated or elected to the Oireachtas, the European Parliament or a local authority, that person will either cease to be a member of the Council or else be placed on secondment (without pay) from their employment (in the case of a staff member).
The National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) is not aware of any of its employees having been elected or co-opted to a local authority. Section 10 of the NTMA Act 1990, as amended, states that a person who is a member of either House of the Oireachtas, the European Parliament or a local authority is disqualified from being employed in any capacity by the Agency. This is also reflected in the NTMA Code of Conduct for Employees. The NTMA assigns staff to Home Building Finance Ireland, the National Asset Management Agency and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland.
During their term of employment, staff of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General are subject to the rules governing civil servants and politics, the Office is guided by Circular 09/2009.
The Office of the Revenue Commissioners is guided in accordance with Circular 09/2009. Staff elected or co-opted to a local authority are subject to a strict necessity to:
• Abide by the provision of Circular 09/2009 and any other relevant Circulars/Policies, in particular, Revenue Data Security and Confidentiality policies and the Revenue Code of Ethics,
• Ensure the role does not conflict with their official duties or broader position as a Revenue officer,
• Ensure their actions, behaviour and comments do not conflict with Revenue policy,
• Ensure that their actions, behaviour, and comments are not attributable to Revenue or capable of being considered Revenue opinion,
• Not engage in debate on tax, customs or frontier management policy or make representations in respect of same, whether on policy matters or individual cases, and
• Not use Revenue stationary or ICT tools, including email, for the purposes of the council role.
Revenue advises staff members that, if at any time they are in doubt about conflict of interest or any potential breach of the conditions, they should seek the advice of Corporate Services Division and that failure to abide by the necessary conditions may give rise to disciplinary action.
Employees of the Tax Appeals Commission can only be elected or co-opted to a local authority by way of a career break, retirement or resignation. Career breaks are governed by Circular Number 4/2013 ‘Career Break Scheme in the Civil Service’ published by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform. An officer may also retire or resign from the Civil Service at any time during their career. Detailed arrangements of the specific requirements placed on civil servants following their retirement or resignation are contained in the ‘Civil Service Code of Standards and Behaviour’ published by the Standards in Public Office Commission.
