TOWN TALK

drinks paid for during the campaign. This comprehensive list also asks where the funds come from and from whom. Anyone providing money or services over €1,000 must be named so people can see who is behind the candidate.

With Keith Doyle

benefit-in-kind gifts such as free space for constituency offices or pop-up offices during elections must be declared.

The topic that is in focus today is election expenses. This is a detailed list ranging from posters and canvassing cards to hiring of cars, newspaper ads, and all the way down to any meals and

This is where Paschal Donohoe came into difficulty with S.I.P.O. A businessman did give funds or services over the declared amount and did not appear on the declaration. As I prepare this piece for print, Sinn Féin also has questions to answer to S.I.P.O. I estimate that this is the tip of the iceberg. I have no doubt that people up and down the country have questions to answer. Because of diligent journalists and whistle-blowers, requests to correct the record will be the order of the day.

My concern with the system is that people keep finding ways around the rules to either ‘wash’ some donations or hide the name of the donor. The most popular way to distance one-self is to lodge a donation into a local party account and during an election it would be released to the candidate as a contribution to the cost of posters! Persons buying tickets to a draw or fundraiser function is another way to muddy the waters. My point is there are many ways to massage the flow of contributions. I feel that the system needs to get serious about this practice. The government must give S.I.P.O. much more powers and resources. In practice, they wait for a written complaint before an earnest investigation. They should work like the Revenue and seek out the leads, follow the money and follow up with appropriate sanctions. I won’t be holding my breath. Quality investigative journalists are what we have to rely on for now. n