Meath council divided on how to handle ethics report into ex-Fianna Fáil councillor Tommy Reilly
A Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO) report on a former Navan councillor was brought before Meath County Council this month for “consideration and noting”.
At the December meeting, councillors were presented with the findings on Tommy Reilly, an ex-Fianna Fáil councillor. Mr Reilly, who had been a councillor since 1996, lost his seat in the Navan electoral area in last year’s local elections, when he was the outgoing cathaoirleach of the local authority.
In August, SIPO found that Mr Reilly had contravened public ethics legislation and acted “recklessly” in a land zoning matter after failing to declare a personal conflict of interest.
Independent councillor Brian Fitzgerald proposed that the report simply be “noted”, arguing there was “nothing we can do”.
“The report is self-explanatory. A debate at this stage would be unnecessary,” he said. His proposal was seconded by Fine Gael councillor Gerry O’Connor.
Sinn Féin councillor Maria White objected, saying members should be allowed to comment.
She said the findings raised broader questions about “culture and practices” within the council.
“We should have an opportunity to share our concerns and consider what we can do as an organisation to prevent anything like this happening again,” she said, adding that she did not intend to comment on Mr Reilly personally as he was not present.
Independent councillor Nick Killian called for a vote on Cllr Fitzgerald’s proposal, while Aontú councillor Emer Tóibín said the council should discuss potential sanctions.
“Tommy Reilly was found in very serious contraventions, and for the council to say we ‘note’ the findings and move on is highly unacceptable,” she said.
“This is not something we can just brush under the carpet… We want to ensure the public still has trust in us.”
Independent councillor David Gilroy said: “If there is no framework by which we can do anything, I don’t think it is helpful to create a narrative that Meath County Council did not do anything in this instance.”
“It’s very important that we stay within the remit on what we can and can’t do.”
“We need to be careful with our language when dealing with matters in the public domain,” he added.
Chief Executive Kieran Kehoe said no vote was required. The report was before councillors solely for “consideration and noting”, he said, and the council had no authority to impose sanctions since Mr Reilly was no longer a sitting member of the council.
“We are not here as an investigating authority, SIPO has done that,” Mr Kehoe said.
“They did not impose any sanction themselves... we as a council have no authority to impose any sanction on a private citizen.”