Probably the best part-time job on the planet – Irish TD’s €118,284 + €54.000 + expences + No general ban on outside employment or businesses – No automatic prohibition on TD’s voting or debating policies that could benefit their outside earnings (e.g., housing/landlord laws affecting rental income).

Conflicts Of Interest
These rules have to be Changed

Is this the scam of the Century, TD’s work conditions they have introduced for themselves?

They can work part time as elected representatives for huge remunerations. Can run unrestricted other businesses while voting on topics, even directly connected to their other businesses in the Dáil which could, in this situation, make them multi millionaires. Is this not an obvious blatant conflict of interest.

It looks like one of the most corrupt decisions ever made by people elected to represent Irish people expected to exercise a code of honesty and ethics in Public Office.

If you have multiple jobs at the same time they are part time jobs. Neither job can get your full attention. Are you just showing up in the Dáil for your own legitimate business interests, not your constituents interests, who voted for you.

How have elected representatives been allowed to
make their elected TD positions
PART TIME JOBS?
How could this be legal?

Our country is being
run by some TD’s and Ministers who are actually only part timers.

No general ban on outside employment or business.

“No general ban on outside employment or business: TD’s can hold other jobs, run businesses, own rental properties, or earn from investments, farming, professions, etc., as long as they comply with disclosure rules”.

“There is no automatic prohibition on TD’s voting on – or debating policies that could benefit their outside earnings” (e.g., housing/landlord laws affecting rental income).

Is this a form of insider trading?

In Ireland, Teachtaí Dála (TDs) members of Dáil Éireann – 6th Highest Paid in EU parliaments €118,284 – Is basically only a part time job with unbelievable privileges, expenses and benefits to make extra millions.

With no consequences for their actions or those who would be at the receiving end of those actions.

In Ireland, Teachtaí Dála (TDs) — members of Dáil Éireann — face relatively few strict legal bans or hard limits on earning income outside their TD salary and allowances. This has led some to question whether we have part timers running our country. Instead, the system relies heavily on mandatory disclosure, transparency, and rules to manage conflicts of interest rather than outright prohibitions on most outside earnings.

Key Legal Framework:

The primary legislation is the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 and 2001 (as amended), overseen by the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO) and the Committee on Members’ Interests of Dáil Éireann. These require TDs to register and declare certain interests annually in the Dáil Register of Member’s Interests.

• No general ban on outside employment or business: TDs can hold other jobs, run businesses, own rental properties, or earn from investments, farming, professions, etc., as long as they comply with disclosure rules.
  
• Disclosure thresholds:
  
  • Any remunerated trade, profession, employment, vocation, or occupation (including rental income) where income exceeds €2,600 in the registration period must be declared.
    
  • This explicitly includes rental income (from houses, holiday homes, or other properties).
    
  • Ownership of land/property (even if not generating income above the threshold) may need declaration in a separate section.
    
  • Gifts, contracts, shares, directorships, and other interests above certain values must also be registered.
    
• Tax compliance: TDs must be tax-compliant (introduced under the 2001 Act), with certificates required in some cases.

Specific Restrictions (Mainly for Office Holders)

• Office holders (e.g., Taoiseach, Tánaiste, Ministers, Ministers of State, Attorney General if a TD, Ceann Comhairle, Leas-Cheann Comhairle, or certain committee chairs) face stricter rules under the Code of Conduct for
  
  Office Holders:
  
  • They should not hold remunerated company directorships (even non-remunerated ones are undesirable).
    
  • They must avoid activities incompatible with their duties or that could interfere with proper discharge of office.
    
  • No general ban on passive income like rentals, but conflicts must be managed (e.g., recusal from decisions affecting personal interests).
    
• Junior Ministers (Ministers of State) fall under office holder rules, so someone like Michael Healy-Rae (as Junior Minister for Agriculture in 2026) would be subject to these added constraints on directorships/business involvement.

Conflicts of Interest Management

• There is no automatic prohibition on TDs voting on or debating policies that could benefit their outside earnings (e.g., housing/landlord laws affecting rental income).
  
• However, TDs must act in the public interest and avoid situations where private interests could improperly influence duties.
  
• In practice, this relies on self-regulation, declarations, and potential scrutiny (e.g., via SIPO investigations or Dáil committees).
  
• If a conflict is blatant (e.g., direct personal financial gain from a vote), it could lead to complaints to SIPO, media scrutiny, or political consequences, but not automatic legal invalidation of votes.
  
• SIPO can investigate breaches of the Ethics Acts (e.g., failure to declare) and impose sanctions like censure, fines, or (in extreme cases) referral for prosecution.
  

Practical Examples from Recent Registers

• Many TDs (around 1 in 5, or ~35 in the 2025 declarations) declare rental income or property ownership without legal issue, as long as declared.
  
• No evidence of caps or bans on rental earnings specifically for TDs — the focus is disclosure to flag potential conflicts (e.g., in housing policy debates).
  
• Some TDs have ceased renting properties (e.g., 5 noted in the 2025 register), but this is voluntary, not mandated.
  

• The 35 TDs who declared rental income (i.e., as landlords) for 2025, according to the latest Dáil register of members’ interests (published in late February 2026), are listed below.
  
  This comes directly from reports on the official disclosures, including a detailed breakdown published by The Journal.ie.Here they are, with their party affiliations:
  
  
• Cathy Bennett (SF)
• Colm Burke (FG)
• Joanna Byrne (SF)
• Seán Canney (Ind)
• Joe Cooney (FG)
• Emer Currie (FG)
• Pa Daly (SF)
• Alan Dillon (FG)
• Albert Dolan (FF)
• Timmy Dooley (FF)
• Frank Feighan (FG)
• Norma Foley (FF)
• Sinéad Gibney (SD)
• Paul Gogarty (Ind)
• Noel Grealish (Ind)
• Johnny Guirke (SF)
• Michael Healy-Rae (Ind)
• Martin Heydon (FG)
• James Lawless (FF)
• Paul Lawless (AON)
• Michael Lowry (Ind)
• Charlie McConalogue (FF)
• Tony McCormack (FF)
• Aindrias Moynihan (FF)
• Michael Moynihan (FF)
• Carol Nolan (Ind)
• Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin (SF)
• Pádraig Rice (SD)
• Peter Roche (FG)
• Eamon Scanlon (FF)
• Brendan Smith (FF)
• Edward Timmins (FG)
• Gillian Toole (Ind)
• Robert Troy (FF)
• Barry Ward (FG)
  
• Breakdown by party (as reported):
• Fianna Fáil (FF): 11
• Fine Gael (FG): 9
• Independents (Ind): 7 (note: some sources say 8, but the named list aligns with 7-8 depending on classification)
• Sinn Féin (SF): 5
• Social Democrats (SD): 2
• Aontú (AON): 1

Code of Conduct for Office Holders issued by the Standards in Public Office Commission (SIPO).

Rules apply to “office holders,” which explicitly include Ministers of the Government and Ministers of State (junior ministers) .Key Restrictions on Running or Holding Other Businesses or do they?

• Office holders should not engage in any activities that could reasonably be regarded as interfering with or being incompatible with the full and proper discharge of their official duties.
  
• They should not hold company directorships that carry remuneration. Even unpaid directorships are regarded as undesirable.
  
• They should not take any part in the decision-making or management of the affairs of a company or professional practice.
  
• They should dispose of, or otherwise set aside (e.g., place in a blind trust or similar arrangement), any financial interests that might conflict, or be seen to conflict, with their position.
  
• The overarching principle is to avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived, between private business interests and public duties. Ministers must prioritize their ministerial role and not use their position for personal gain.
  

Disclosure Requirements

• Under the Ethics in Public Office Act, office holders must disclose registrable interests (e.g., shares, directorships, land/property, remunerated positions, contracts, etc.) annually.
  
• If a material interest arises in relation to a specific function they are performing (or proposing to perform), they must declare it in writing to the Taoiseach (for most ministers) and/or the Commission, and may need to abstain or recuse themselves.
  
• Failure to comply can lead to investigations by SIPO, potential sanctions, or findings of contravention.
  

Additional Context

• These rules stem from the need to maintain public confidence and prevent conflicts. While full-time private business ownership or active management is effectively prohibited (or at minimum highly restricted and discouraged), passive investments (e.g., shares without control) may be allowed if disclosed and non-conflicting.
  
• There is no outright constitutional ban like for the President, but the ethical framework is robust.
  
• Post-office restrictions (e.g., cooling-off periods under the Regulation of Lobbying Act) apply separately for lobbying-related activities, but not directly to running businesses.
  
  

“If a junior minister were actively running another business while in office, it would likely breach these guidelines and could trigger scrutiny, complaints to SIPO, or political controversy.

For the most current or case-specific details, refer to the Standards in Public Office Commission website or the full Ethics Acts”.

Summary

Is this why our country has one crises after another?

Our country is being governed by part-time representatives who hold additional jobs and operate businesses outside the Dáil. This leaves them too preoccupied with private pursuits to properly concentrate on the work they were elected to do on behalf of the people who voted for them

Elected TD’s enter the Dáil Chambers and obtain sensitive information on matters including housing, health, grants, immigration, and a wide range of other policy areas. They may then place themselves in a position to advance or secure the passage of legislation that advantages their external business interests.

This is extremely serious — it bears all the hallmarks of a deeply corrupt and deceitful practice designed to give an unfair advantage to any elected TD placed in that position.

How can a country operate it’s government with a reasonable degree of honesty and effectiveness under circumstances where elected representatives are permitted to hold outside jobs or run businesses.

There are no robust safeguards or transparency in this system to minimize, risks of conflicts of interest, sensitive data leaked, or neglect of public duties.

__________________________________________

Typical Dáil Sitting Schedule

The Dáil typically sits on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays (sometimes with limited Monday/Friday activity) when in session. It does not sit on weekends or public holidays. The annual calendar includes several recesses:

• Summer recess: Often the longest, typically 8–10 weeks (e.g., from mid-July to mid-September).
  
• Christmas recess: Around 2–4 weeks.
  
• Easter and other breaks: 1–2 weeks each, plus shorter adjournments (e.g., around St. Patrick’s Day).
  
• Additional non-sitting days align with public holidays.
  

Recent examples from provisional Oireachtas calendars show the Dáil sitting for roughly 100–140 days per year (or about 33 weeks out of 52), depending on the exact session and any extensions or early dissolutions. For instance:

• One recent year saw the Dáil sit for 100 days (945 hours). oireachtas.ie
• Provisional 2025/2026 calendars indicate around 139 sitting days from September to July, with marked recess periods. data.oireachtas.ie

https://data.oireachtas.ie/ie/oireachtas/parliamentaryBusiness/other/2025-07-11_provisional-calendar-of-dail-sittings_en.pdf