Declaration of Oireachtas members interests

Get them while they are hot.

Dail members Seanad Members

I would say that Willie O'Dea has a question over his form.

There is a remarkable (hence my remarking on it) lack of consistency about this, some reps list their Dail income as occupational income many others don’t are they supposed to or not? I’m kind of surprised that so few own shares in anything. Maybe it is a generational thing. Though it may be that they are only required to do so if it exceeds a certain amount.

Some like Joe Costello list their SSIA while the majority appear not to list them. (I can’t imagine that the vast majority of TDs didn’t take out an SSIA)

Tony Dempsey has an apartment in Cypress (sic)! CyriUsLee! Does anyone check this record properly? I mean I recall reading the local elections expenditure reports filed with Dublin City Council and we had barefaced falsehoods such as Maurice Ahern brother of the Taoiseach saying his total spending was €750, that is on his entire election campaign. That is non-binding as I understand it meanwhile the register of Dail interests in a meant to be proper track of what people have and there is no consistency to the thing at all.

John Ellis, says he has no shares in excess of 13,000 (that is individually I take it) but his colleague Martin Brady lists the €8,400 in shares he has in the credit union. If these guys can’t fill in a form on their own interests properly then what use might they be to the average punter in helping them navigate the bureaucracy of the state.

Michael McDowell who lists below interests in 4 properties doesn’t seem to list his holiday home down the country in Roscommon that had the planning issues a while back - could be he sold it. Or is it an oversight?

"(1) Half interest as tenant in common of land adjoining home in Ranelagh. (2) 9 Manders Terrace, Dublin 6. (3) 10% interest in block in Eastpoint Office Park, Dublin 1. (4) 33 Old Bond Street, London (part ownership).

Other Information Provided: All owned jointly with spouse. "

Willie O’Dea lists nothing under either Occupational Income or Gifts or Property and Service or Remunerated Position or Contracts. So is his column in the Sindo for free and it isn’t advertising? Surely that has to be counted as a gift in either a free national mouthpiece or something he is paid for?

New PD Leader Poster Revealed

Or as Captain Flashhard might say "Slack Bowel". The other advice must be to avoid a dose of Chris Andrews as he might cause you to "throw it all away" out your rear.

That FF ad in full

Kudos to the Irish Elections guys for this one