FIANNA Fáil energy spokesman Éamon Ó Cuív has called on Minister for Marine Simon Coveney to investigate the circumstances surrounding the involvement of a State regulatory agency chief executive in a private US company.
Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) executive chairman Peter Whelan was appointed late last month to the board of US Oil and Gas plc, an exploration company with main assets in Nevada, US, and an address in Percy Place, Dublin 4.
Mr Whelan also holds shares in the company, with 55,000 transferred to him on July 14th last for “services rendered”.
Mr Whelan is a full-time paid head of the State-run SFPA, which regulates all fishing vessels operating within Ireland’s 200-mile limit, and implements national and EU seafood safety rules.
In announcing his appointment to its board on November 21st last, US Oil and Gas plc said that Mr Whelan “works closely with the Office of the Attorney General, the Director of Public Prosecutions and the gardaí”.
It noted that he “advises Government ministers on policy and enforcement and has overall responsibility for corporate governance issues”, as well as being “directly accountable to a parliamentary committee on budget expenditure and organisational performance”.
It said Mr Whelan would head up US Oil and Gas plc’s audit and remuneration committees. It listed his current directorships as SFPA chairman and director of Curran Communications Ltd.
Under section 47 of the Sea Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006, which established the SFPA in 2007, a member of the authority “shall not hold any other office or employment in respect of which emoluments are payable”.
It says that an authority member “shall not, for a period of two years following his or her resignation, removal or retirement . . . accept any office, consultancy or employment, where he or she could or might use or disclose information of a commercially sensitive nature acquired by him or her in the exercise of the function of the authority”.
As public servants, SFPA authority members and staff are bound by legislation including the Ethics in Public Office Act 2005, according to the Standard in Public Office Commission.
The SFPA’s code of business conduct published in 2011 says that employees “shall not involve themselves in outside business/employment interests which would be in conflict or potential conflict with the business of the SFPA”.
However, it also says that members of the authority “shall disclose outside business or employment interests which they consider may be in conflict or potential conflict with the business of the SFPA”.
Mr Ó Cuív said that Mr Coveney must “immediately investigate the issue”, and ensure that agencies and staff associated with his department are “in compliance with the law and in compliance with the highest ethical standards”.
Mr Coveney told The Irish Timeshe was unaware of Mr Whelan's appointment to the company board and did not wish to comment further.
Mr Whelan did not respond to calls from The Irish Timesthis week.
Before his appointment to the SFPA, Mr Whelan was formerly director of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland’s service contracts and had responsibility for developing, managing, reviewing and renegotiation of service contracts across the public service.
The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources confirmed yesterday that US Oil and Gas plc is not currently involved in any licences or leases issued by it for energy exploration or exploitation.
