Calls for FF cathaoirleach to stand aside over Sipo probe

● Rezoned land in Meath rose in value from €0.5m to €4.2m

Aontú has called for the Fianna Fáil cathaoirleach of Meath County Council to step aside from his role until an investigation into alleged breaches of ethics legislation is concluded.

The Standards in Public Office Commission (Sipo) last week announced it will hold a two-day hearing into Councillor Tommy Reilly, starting on April 15.

The Sipo hearing will focus on alleged contraventions of the Local Government Act and the Code of Conduct for Councillors.

A spokesman for Sipo said it would only reveal details of the charges being brought against Cllr Reilly at the hearing.

Cllr Reilly has previously been the subject of a Meath County Council investigation into whether he breached ethics legislation in relation to the rezoning of a 35-acre site owned by his son that helped increase its value from €500,000 to €4.2m in 2017.

Councillor Reilly had declared a conflict of interest when the rezoning of the site, in Liscarton on the outskirts of Navan, had come before councillors in July 2017. He absented himself from the vote.

The rezoning of the land was later the focus of a detailed report by journalist Frank Connolly in Village magazine. Following that, Jackie Maguire, the chief executive of Meath County Council carried out a review of Cllr Reilly’s role.

It found he had “inadvertently” broken ethical rules by not updating his annual register of interests, but the councillor believed he had acted in good faith and had met his statutory ethical obligations by absenting himself from the crucial 2017 meeting on the rezoning of the land. The review said it was “unwise” for the councillor to have attended a pre-planning application consultation meeting with the council on the land.

Cllr Reilly updated his register of interests in 2020 regarding his son’s ownership of the land.

The CEO and cathaoirleach at the time of the review in 2020 concluded that no further action was warranted. Sipo was informed of the report and its conclusion.

This weekend, Cllr Reilly did not respond to questions about the Sipo decision to hold a hearing into alleged breaches of ethics rules.

When contacted, Fianna Fáil issued the following statement: “The party notes the Sipo statement this week, has been in contact with the councillor concerned, and will monitor developments closely.”

Peadar Tóibín, the Meath West TD and Aontú leader, said that Cllr Reilly should stand aside from his role as cathaoirleach until the Sipo investigation concludes.

He said while it was unclear if the Sipo investigation was related to the Liscarton land development, Aontú did not have confidence in him to be the council’s cathaoirleach over his failure to declare his family connections to that land in his annual declarations.

“We voted against his election as cathaoirleach last July for this very reason,” said Mr Tóibín, whose sister Emer Tóibín is an Aontú councillor in Meath.

“It is common in Ireland that people step down from their positions while being investigated, and we believe that Tommy Reilly should do just that.

“He should step down from his position until there is a full investigation into his conduct and a judgment by Sipo.

“We understand that under the law he is innocent until proven guilty, but there must be full transparency at council level.”