FINANCE Minister Paschal Donohoe has admitted he has not asked former Fine Gael TD Dara Murphy to refer himself to a Dáil ethics committee over the double-jobbing controversy.

Mr Donohoe said the government is still looking at how to investigate the controversy over Mr Murphy continuing as a Dáil deputy despite also working as a campaign director for Fine Gael’s EU grouping, the European People’s Party, between 2017 and this year.

There have been calls for the Dáil members’ interest committee to investigate his claiming of allowances and expenses while being largely absent from the Dáil for the past two years. Mr Murphy resigned as a TD earlier this month to take up a new €150,000-a-year role in the European Commission.

The matter cannot be investigated by the Dáil clerk, the ethics watchdog Sipo, or the Dáil members’ interest committee unless Mr Murphy refers himself to the committee under section 9 of the Ethics Act 1995.

Mr Donohoe said he wanted to change the rules so that former Dáil members can be investigated.

But speaking in Dublin on Wednesday, Mr Donohoe repeatedly refused to answer whether he had asked Mr Murphy to refer himself to the probe, before admitting: “Given that I haven’t been engaging with him directly myself, the answer to that question is no.

“The government is dealing with the issue and the Department of Taoiseach and I will come up with a way of inquiring into this matter.”

Mr Donohoe said he wanted to change the rules that currently prohibited inquiries being launched into former Dáil members who are subject to complaints under the Ethics Act.

“I had understandings regarding how this issue could be dealt with [but] because Mr. Murphy is no longer a member of the Dáil,” Mr Donohoe said.

“It has since become evident to me that the ways of dealing with these issues for an existing member of the Oireachtas and a former member of the Oireachtas are very, very different.”

“That needs to change and I will find a way in which we can change that. But the issue that we have is in the here and now and I’m aware of the fact that we need to come up with a way of dealing with this issue to answer what are legitimate questions of public interest.”

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