A majority of TDs are involved in activities from which they are receiving an income in addition to their Dail salary. These non-political activities range from directorships in private sector companies to rental income from property and land letting.
At present, TDs receive an annual basic salary of £38,000. A review body, to be established by the end of the year, will examine this pay level. It has been widely reported that TDs will seek an increase bringing their basic pay to £50,000 a year. An analysis of the most recent register of interests of Dail deputies indicates that 120 TDs have sources of income in addition to their Dail salaries and allowances.
The annual register of interests, which must be completed by all Oireachtas members, was introduced under the 1995 Ethics in Public Office Act. The most recent declarations cover the period up to the end of January last.
The register shows TDs from all parties are involved in outside activities which provide them with an income in addition to their Dail salaries. These activities include directorships in private sector companies; rental income from property and farming.
One in five of the members of the present Dail are owners of agricultural land, which is either being farmed by family members or is leased for rental income. Several TDs, including the Fine Gael Cork South West TD, Mr Jim O'Keeffe, have an interest in land that is under forestry. Mr O'Keeffe's other property interests include the law offices of the Skibbereen solicitors' firm in which he is a partner.
While known from pulling pints in the family pub, the Independent Kerry South TD, Mr Jackie Healy-Rae, lists his only non-political income as deriving from a 300-acre farm in Kilgarvan.
Several TDs have an involvement in the pub trade. They include the Fianna Fail Wicklow TD, Mr Joe Jacob, who is Minister of State at the Department of Public Enterprise. Mr Tom Moffatt, who is a Fianna Fail TD in Mayo, lists his non-political income as deriving from his medical practice in Ballina. He also has an interest in a pub and newsagents in the Co Mayo town.
Another publican, Mr John Maloney, one of the three Fianna Fail TDs in Laois-Offaly, is also an undertaker. The Fine Gael Sligo-Leitrim TD, Mr John Perry, has a supermarket and hardware business in Co Sligo.
Alongside these politicans with family businesses, a significant number of TDs are in receipt of income from rented property. Several TDs have an interest in apartment properties in Dublin. These include Mr Sean Doherty of Fianna Fail, who represents Longford-Roscommon, and Mr Alan Shatter, the Fine Gael Dublin South TD, who also practises as a solicitor.
Like Mr Shatter some TDs have managed to juggle their work as an elected representative with a second job. These include Mr Dick Roche, who is a Fianna Fail deputy for Wicklow and a university lecturer.
More than a dozen of the current members of the Dail were teachers prior to being elected. Several of these TDs are still in receipt of some income from the Department of Education. These include Fine Gael's Kerry North TD, Mr Jimmy Deenihan; Mr Brian O'Shea, who represents the Labour Party in Waterford, and Fine Gael's Mayo deputy, Mr Jim Higgins. Some politicians, including the Minister for Education, Mr Micheal Martin, have opted not to take this money which is the residue of their own teacher's salary after the payment made to a temporary substitute teacher.
Among the TDs who are directors of private companies, the Fine Gael Dun Laoghaire deputy, Mr Sean Barrett, is chairman and executive director of several companies in the insurance sector. Mr John Ellis, who represents Fianna Fail in Sligo-Leitrim has an involvement with a bank in Karachi. However, Mr Ellis receives no remuneration from the bank which, he says, has "no interests in Ireland".
The son of former Taoiseach, Mr Charles Haughey, Mr Sean Haughey is a Fianna Fail TD in Dublin North-Central. He is a shareholder and non-executive director in Larchfield Securities Ltd, which he describes, as a "non-rading family company".
As well as being a barrister, former Fianna Fail minister and Tipperary North TD, Mr Michael O'Kennedy, is involved with a Transnational Life Assurance company. The former PD leader, Mr Des O'Malley, who represents Limerick East, is chairman of Europa General, a Co Galway based insurance company.
Those TDs with consultancy interests tend to have ministerial experience. They include the former Taoiseach Mr Albert Reynolds; the former Tanaiste Mr Dick Spring and former ministers Mr Jim Mitchell, Mr Alan Dukes and Mr Richard Bruton.
Mr Reynolds holds five directorships including Blairton, a Mullingar consultancy firm; the Smurfit Group and Asia Pacific Resources, a "holding company for strategic investments" based in Singapore.
The directorships of the former Labour leader, Mr Spring, include Fexco, the Co Kerry-based financial services company, and Airtel, a software firm located in Dublin.
Mr Dukes, who has served as minister in Fine Gael governments led by Dr Garret FitzGerald and Mr John Bruton, provides "consultancy services" on public administration and agricultural, trade and development policies. Mr Richard Bruton, who was Minister for Enterprise and Employment in the rainbow government, was involved last year in an EU project in Kazakstan.
There are only a small number of TDs who provide companies and lobby groups with remunerated advice. The Fianna Fail Dublin South-East TD, Mr Eoin Ryan, acts for the Irish Music Rights Organisation while Fine Gael's Mr Gay Mitchell, who represents Dublin South-Central is involved with "productivity specialists" IMPA Ltd.
The Fianna Fail TD in Dublin South-West, Mr Conor Lenihan, advises two telecommunications companies ESAT Digifone and Torc Telecom. Mr Lehihan, who was first elected in the last general election, worked with ESAT Digifone prior to entering the Dail. ail seat.
Mr Liam Lawlor, who represents Dublin West for Fianna Fail, is involved with Demographic and Strategic Consultants and Rotary M&E Services in Dublin. In his entry on the register of interests, Mr Lawlor describes this income as a "monthly retainer". He is also involved with a property development company in the Czech Republic.
The evidence from the declarations is that party leaders tend not to have outside income sources from directorships, shares or property. Neither the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, nor the Tanaiste, Ms Harney, are in receipt of any income outside their involvement in Government.
Like many other Dail members the Labour leader, Mr Ruairi Quinn, owns shares in First Active. He also has an interest in Gazboro, a film project company.
The Dunboyne family home of the Fine Gael leader, Mr Bruton, is on a 220-acre farm while he also lets a 130-acre farm in Co Meath. Mr Bruton also declared "miscellaneous income from media organisation for appearances, articles and book reviews".
Among the current cabinet the Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, is in receipt of a pension from the Co Kildare-based accountancy firm where he was a partner until June 1997. He continues to have an interest in the firm's office property in Naas.
Where the TDs get their additional remuneration . .
1. Rent from property and land
2. Directorships in private companies
3. Share ownership
4. Involvement in pub trade; insurance; accountancy; legal work; teaching