The Dail committee charged with investigating complaints under the 1995 Ethics Act has been told it would be outrageous if anonymous allegations were considered.
Draft guidelines for conducting inquiries into complaints against politicians have been received by the Dail's Select Committee on Members' Interests and were discussed at yesterday's meeting.
The protocol aims to provide a guideline for inquiries and the conduct of formal hearings. But the guidelines are not definitive and are likely to be redrafted after further consideration.
The committee was set up under the 1995 Ethics in Public Office Act and one of its functions is to investigate alleged breaches of the regulations by members of the Oireachtas - other than officeholders.
Anyone, including a TD, can make a complaint, in writing, about any member but the allegation must be specific.
Though the protocol suggests a complainant's identity should be clear from the written complaint, Mr John Browne, Fine Gael TD for Carlow-Kilkenny, expressed dismay at the possibility that his/ her name would not be signed to the complaint. It would be "outrageous" if a politician was subjected to an anonymous charge.
The chairman of the Committee on Members' Interests, Mr Tony Killeen, said this concern was shared by other members.
Ms Eileen Roberts from A & L Goodbody, the solicitors retained by the committee, said that while the body had legal privileges, little could be done if someone decided to "leak" a complaint.
But she said some investigations could be "media-sensitive" and the committee had discretion in determining whether a sitting should be held in private or in public.
