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BEN GILROY, THE Direct Democracy Ireland candidate who came a surprise fourth in the Meath East by-election, has been referred to gardaí after failing to file details of election donations and expenses.
Gilroy, who picked up 6.5 per cent of the vote and finished ahead of Labour’s Eoin Holmes, has said that he has spoken to gardaí and intends to file his donations and expenses statement to the Standards in Public Office Commission by the weekend.
“The gardaí were on to us,” Gilroy said. “The documentation is like a phone book of stuff you have to fill out. But we’ll be putting it in this weekend and they are happy enough with that.”
SIPO said it has received no communication from Gilroy or his election agent Conor Delgarno – both of whom have been referred to the gardaí – and declined to comment further.
However a spokesperson did confirm that Gilroy would be entitled to be reimbursed for his expenses once he files them, even though he missed the deadline of 22 May for relevant, statutory documentation to be submitted.
SIPO has also revealed that one candidate who did not disclose his expenditure in the 2007 general election, the 2009 local elections as well as this year’s by-election will not be referred to the gardaí or the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Despite breaching the law on disclosure three times Independent candidate Jim Tallon, who received 47 votes in Meath East, will not be referred to authorities this time as the DPP had previously found that “the public interest does not require a prosecution”.
Tallon has run in several elections in several constituencies since 1981. He was previously a candidate in the 2011 Dublin West by-election where we reported on his unusual portrayal of Knight Rider.
The figures released today show that a total of over €106,000 was disclosed as having been spent during the by-election which was won by Fine Gael’s Helen McEntee.
Candidates were limited to spending €31,150 each with McEntee spending the most – €29,842.59. Second placed Thomas Byrne, Fianna Fáil, spent €28,913.57.
Despite finishing fifth Labour’s Eoin Holmes spent €23,988.64 and third placed Darren O’Rourke, Sinn Féin, spent €15,450.85.
With SIPO rules stating that any donation in excess of €600 must be disclosed, there was just one disclosure with the Workers Party’s Seamus McDonagh saying he received a €763 donation.
A total of €34,800 will be paid by the Exchequer to the four candidates, McEntee, Byrne, O’Rourke and Gilroy who qualify for the maximum reimbursement of €8,700 having received at least a quarter of the quota.
Gilroy’s payment will be delayed until such time as he files his documentation.
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Lowest viewing figure since 2008.
@Beachmaster:hopefully them numbers will continue to dwindle. Apparently 70% of Hollywood’s revenue comes from outside the U.S. interesting statistic when you consider the amount of Americans they’ve managed to p1ss off, I guess they aren’t too bothered about the domestic market.
As one person tweeted after…M Night Shamalan did a great job directing the Oscars”..
Shamalan went one better and tweeted that he wrote it! https://twitter.com/MNightShyamalan/status/836084032798670848
@Beachmaster: 2008 the year or those who watched it lol.
Ratings down before this fiasco.. talk about making a##es of yourselves.
@LITTLEONE: the cynic in me says it was purposely done for the sake of controversy, and to get people talking .More than likely not, but I wouldn’t be a bit surprised.
““I became an artist and thank God I did,” she continued “because we are the only profession that celebrates what it means to live a life.” — Viola Davis
Is anyone else sock of hearing about the Oscars? You’d swear it actually mattered…
@Titus Groan: I’m sock of it too!
Like… the envelopes were mixed up and they all lost their mind. Some, their jobs. It’s a joke. It doesn’t matter!!!!
Jamie, and Viola Davis gets the Award for ‘Most Pretentious BS of The Century’. Proof, if proof were needed that these peoples learn scripts without understanding the meaning of the words.
@Titus Groan: You’d be hearing about it for a lot longer in case it’d been the other way round – if La La Land had actually won and Moonlight erroneously read out.
@Mick Tobin:
Why do you think that?
@Joseph Siddall:
Maybe it was pretentious, but I am pretty sure after graduating from college, spending four years at Julliard and then performing the play on Broadway for 13 weeks, she understands the meaning of the words she is saying.
@Gary Caffrey: Remember last year’s hashtag? http://www.thejournal.ie/oscars-so-white-2016-2549939-Jan2016/ Vice versa the failure would have been all the more epic.
@Mick Tobin:
You are really trying hard to find a racial side to this. I think that says more about you than anything else.
@Gary Caffrey: Absolutely not. Just saying the cockup would have been rather more significant. I’m happy with more diversity now and glad it didn’t go the other way.
They put a sick it it at this stage..
@Titus Groan: Turns out those in the porn industry have their own award ceremony and the funny thing is that they wear more on their bodies as in clothing than those Hollywood actors, funny that?
Haha.
The Donald has them rattled.
And the winner of best propaganda goes to…. White Helmets /Al Queda.
@Keiko: Who killed the Syrian Civil Defence force and stole their equipment and who rob the dying of what they have as well as shoot others on sectarian grounds. Funny how in fact Hollywood has really given a reward to the same ones involved in 911 Al Queda really.
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=white+helmets+caught+faking+a+rescue&qpvt=white+helmets+caught+faking+a+rescue&FORM=VDRE
@Keiko: The White Helmet’s Cook Book will be next?
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4263726/Terror-group-teaching-fighters-EAT-non-Muslims.html
Did they get any chance to bad mouth The Trumper
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