Double expense claim allegation made against Donegal councillor

A Donegal County Councillor has appeared before the Standards in Public Office Commission over allegations around travel and subsistence expenses, including an allegation that he claimed expenses for the same conference from two different bodies.

A total of nine alleged contraventions are made against Cllr Pádraig Doherty, an independent representative for the Glenties electoral area, following a complaint by Donegal County Council.

Cllr Doherty, who is standing in the upcoming local elections, admitted to the contraventions and, through his legal representative, apologised to the commission, but said the the contraventions were “unintentional” and “inadvertent”.

Three of the allegations relate to Cllr Doherty’s attendance of the Association of County and City Councils’ Annual conference in Dungarvan, Co Waterford between March 8th and March 10th 2007.

The commission heard that Cllr Doherty claimed travel and subsistence expenses totalling € 1,021.08 from Donegal County Council in December 2007 but had, three months earlier, claimed expenses from Údarás na Gaeltachta for the same conference for a total of € 1,032.75.

However, Cllr Doherty later wrote to Donegal County Council in August 2011, a year prior to a complaint being made in relation to the matter, saying he had discovered the duplication during a review of his expense claims and repaid the full € 1,021.08 to the council.

Further allegations against Cllr Doherty relate to two separate conferences which took place in Waterford and Galway on two consecutive days in November 2008.

Cllr Doherty attended the first of the two conferences, the Irish Central Border Area Network Conference in Dundalk, Co Louth, on November 20th 2008 and returned home that night. He later made a claim for mileage and subsistence of € 295.39.

The commission heard that, the following day Cllr Doherty attended a meeting of Údarás na Gaeltachta in Furbo, Co Galway for which he claimed mileage expenses and overnight expenses despite spending that night in Donegal.

However, Cllr Doherty’s legal representative, senior council Richard Lyons, read correspondence from Údarás na Gaeltachta stating that Cllr Doherty had later written to it amending his claim to state he left Donegal at 4am on November 21st 2008 and not 4pm on November 20th which it had accepted .

Mr Lyons said Cllr Doherty, who had been an Údarás na Gaeltachta member for 26 years and a council member for 15 years, had admitted to the breaches a “very early stage”, had cooperated fully with the inquiry. He also noted that there had been no financial loss to either body.

Chair of the commission, Mr Justice Daniel O’Keeffe said it would deliver its decision within a matter of weeks.