v. reports on enforcement in oecd convention countries - Begroting

objectivity in the judiciary, including changes in the appointment process, although there are some issues to be
resolved in that connection. Several NGOs, including TI Hungary, reported in July 2010 that the government had
been undermining rule of law guarantees by adopting bills into law without following due process. In a follow-up
report, these groups highlighted the violation of the rule of law and other critical issues in the fi eld of transparency
and the system of checks and balances. 207 An act on lobbying activity was repealed in 2010.
Recommendations: There are many fi elds in which improvements are necessary. Introduce effective whistleblower
protection. Introduce and enforce party and campaign fi nance regulation. Improve strategic planning of
anti-corruption efforts. Raise awareness and communication of anti-corruption efforts and tools.
IRELAND
LITTLE OR NO ENFORCEMENT: No cases and unknown number of investigations. Share of world exports is
1.1 per cent.
Foreign bribery cases or investigations: Four Oil-for-Food investigations were reported in 2008 and there were no
developments in 2010.
Domestic bribery by foreign companies: On 22 March 2011, the Tribunal of Inquiry into Payments to Politicians
and Related Matters (the ‘Moriarty Tribunal’) published its fi nal report on its nine-year investigation into the
awarding of Ireland’s second mobile phone licence in 1996. The report found that the Norwegian company Telenor
Mobile had in December 1995 made a US $50,000 political donation indirectly to Fine Gael (then the ruling
party) on behalf of telecommunications company Esat Digifone, a consortium including Telenor and the Irish
company Esat Telecommunications (Esat Telecom). 208 The donation was allegedly made through an agent and Fine
Gael fundraiser, was channelled through an offshore account in Jersey, and an invoice was issued to Telenor for
‘consultancy services.’ 209 According to the report, the amount was later reimbursed to Telenor by Esat Telecom. The
Tribunal’s fi ndings are now subject to review by An Garda Síochána (the Irish police service) and have been brought
to the attention of the Norwegian authorities. 210
Inadequacies in legal framework: The Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act of 2010 has considerably
improved the legal framework relating to foreign bribery (see below). However, there is no specifi c foreign bribery
offence and no defi nition of foreign bribery. Furthermore, there are inconsistencies between the Prevention of
Corruption Act and the bribery offences contained in the Criminal Justice (Theft and Fraud Offences) Act 2001.
Inadequacies in enforcement system: There is little information or data on resources and training allocated for
enforcing the Convention. There is no single, comprehensive law for whistle-blower protection in Ireland 211 and
there is a serious lack of transparency regarding investigations and enforcement of the Convention.
Legal framework and enforcement system regarding subsidiaries, agents and other intermediaries: There is no
explicit provision under the Prevention of Corruption Act (1889 – 2010) for the prosecution of parent companies
for failure to prevent bribery. Nationality jurisdiction can be applied to Irish citizens, persons ordinarily resident in
Ireland, and corporate bodies established in the State believed to have bribed a public offi cial overseas.
Recent developments: In December 2010, the Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) passed the Prevention of Corruption
(Amendment) Act 2010. The Act makes some welcome changes to the law on corruption in Ireland by addressing
many of the shortcomings highlighted by the OECD in its 2010 Phase 2 report on compliance with the Convention.
In particular, it amends the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906 and the Prevention of Corruption Act 2001 so as
to provide for whistle-blower protection; provide for nationality-based jurisdiction for offences under the Act;
defi ne the term “corruptly” as used in that act; amend the defi nition of the term “agent” to cover offi cials of
207 Assessing the First Wave of Legislation by Hungary’s New Parliament, 23 July 2010,
http://helsinki.hu/dokumentum/Hungarian_NGOs_assessing_legislation_July2010.pdf
208 Report of the Tribunal of Inquiry into Payments to Politicians and Related Matters, March 2011,
http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0322/moriarty.html
209 Ibid.
210 Ibid.
211 Transparency International “Timed Out: Statutes of Limitations and Prosecuting Corruption in EU Countries”,
http://www.transparency.org/regional_pages/europe_central_asia/projects_and_activities/statutes_limitations
Progress Report 2011: Enforcement of the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention
41