Sipo responds to criticism around timing of publication of Robert Troy report
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The Standards in Public Office Commission (Sipo) has responded to criticism from Paul Murphy regarding the timing of their publication of a report into Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy.
People Before Profit TD Mr Murphy made a complaint to Sipo regarding what the report called a "pattern of omissions or errors in successive declarations" of interest. The report found that Mr Troy contravened ethics laws over property declarations he made in 2020 and 2021.
Mr Troy resigned as minister of state at the Department of Enterprise in 2022 after his declarations became the centre of controversy. On Wednesday, Mr Murphy said it was "extremely troubling" that Sipo waited until December 10 to publish its report despite the fact that it had been completed on October 21.
He said the people of Longford-Westmeath had the right to know the findings of the report before they voted in the general election which saw Mr Troy re-elected in his constituency.
In a statement to the , a spokesperson for Sipo said: "Mindful of its role as an impartial and independent body, the commission decided not to publish any non-routine reports in the run-up to the General Election which was then imminent.
"The commission published the full report as soon as possible after the conclusion of the election on 10 December 2024."
The hearing into the matter was held on June 10 with a report subsequently drafted which was then considered at a meeting on October 21.
"The report was agreed, subject to some minor drafting amendments. The drafting amendments were then carried out and the report, including its findings and determinations, was prepared for publication," it said.
Mr Murphy called the explanation provided by Sipo "incredible" claiming that it had acted in "a decidedly partial way by acting to shield Robert Troy from the consequences of his actions".
"Their purpose is to be a watchdog for corrupt and unethical behaviour of politicians," Mr Murphy said.
"The most significant power they have is the power of public exposure. Here instead they chose not to use this power by delaying publication until after the public had the opportunity to pass judgement on Troy and his party."
The Sipo report stated that Mr Troy contravened section 5 of the Ethics Act "on multiple occasions, in some respects inadvertently and in some respects negligently.
"While an individual error, once corrected promptly, may not in itself be a serious matter, the commission finds that this pattern of omissions or errors in successive declarations was a serious matter."
It found statements in relation to six properties and the directorship of a property company, that Mr Troy's contraventions were committed negligently while statements regarding a Rental Accommodation Scheme contract were inadvertent.
Mr Troy admitted that in his original statements of interests for 2020 and 2021, he did not list four properties in the correct section and as such failed to comply with provisions of the Ethics Act on two occasions. It accepted Mr Troy's claim that this was a misunderstanding rather than a deliberate attempt to conceal information.
The commission also accepted that Mr Troy's failure to include a separate property in his 2020 statement, which had been included in 2019, was "not a deliberate attempt by him to conceal relevant interests". However, it also said "reasonable attention by Deputy Troy to the task in hand would have prevented his misunderstanding of what was required".
In relation to the directorship of RMT Management, Mr Troy admitted that he should have, but had not, included it in his statement in 2021. The commission found this was not a deliberate attempt to conceal relevant interests but Mr Troy "could easily have established the facts" surrounding the company being dissolved.
Mr Troy was found to have contravened the Ethics Act as he did not include a rental property he was party to, along with a co-owner, which was contracted under the Rental Accommodation Scheme in his 2020 and 2021 statements.
Following the publication of the report, Mr Troy said he welcomed the findings and had "always accepted this was a serious matter" and that he had sought to rectify his errors as soon as they became apparent.
"The commission did not find evidence that I acted other than in the mistaken belief that my actions in making the original declarations were in accordance with the commission's guidelines," he said.
Mr Murphy said the "damning" report raised questions for Fianna Fáil as to whether they think it is appropriate for someone to have been found by Sipo to have breached the ethics legislation to continue as a TD for the party.
A Fianna Fáil spokesperson said: "We note Deputy Robert Troy’s statement on the final findings from the Standards in Public Office Commission regarding errors in his Declaration of Members' Interests.
"We also note the commission found that while serious errors were made, he had acted in good faith and did not intentionally seek to conceal or avoid public disclosure of interests. We consider the matter to be concluded."