And the Dungarvan-based TD said if he could claim more expenses he would and use the money to open a fourth constituency office in Waterford City to meet the demand from constituents seeking advice and help from him.

According to the Daily Mail this week, Deputy Deasy received the third highest TDs expenses payment for the period December 2005 to 2006 behind FF deputy Noel Davern in neighbouring Tipperary South, who claimed •85,998 and Donegal TD Denis McGinley, who clocked a •85,962 expenses bill.

Of the other Waterford TDs, Fianna Fail TD Ollie Wilkinson claimed •60,349 in expenses and is ranked 50th in the list of 166 TDs while Labour TD Brian O’Shea received •52,481 in expenses.

Transport Minister Martin Cullen, along with 11 other Cabinet members, claimed a total of •17,776 in expenses.

But this doesn’t reflect the true scale of the expenses paid out to Minister Cullen or other Cabinet members. They are entitled to claim ministerial expenses, which are separate to the expenses claimed by TDs and not covered in the expenses details the Daily Mail obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

Expenses are paid in addition to a TD’s basic salary of •90,770.

Dail members receive expenses for travel and overnight stays in Dublin while the Dail is in session, secretarial, telephone and for maintenance of constituency offices. A special grant is available to them for setting up a constituency office.

The figures compiled by the Daily Mail this week don’t take account of the fact that some TDs haven’t yet claimed all of their expenses for 2006, while the expenses claimed by some covered part of the previous year as well as last year.

Fine Gael TD John Deasy said he spent his expenses money on improving the service he provides to his constituents.

“In fairness I throw everything back into it. I have three constituency offices in Dungarvan, Tramore and Lismore and I put my expenses into those. One of my offices is open full-time and the other two are open two to three days per week. I would open them full-time if I had more money and if I had the resources I would open another office in the city.”

He pointed out that the TDs’ expenses bills published in the Daily Mail were misleadingly inflated by the inclusion of a tax free allowance that was actually part of their salaries.

Fianna Fail TD Ollie Wilkinson said TDs earned every penny they got as they put in grueling work schedules that amounted to twice the normal industrial working week hours.

“We do about 80 hours a week and that is all year round. We had a few days off for Christmas but we are now fully back into 12 hour days meeting people and holding clinics around our constituency. We earn what we get.

“If anybody feels like doing the job, all they have to do is stand for election. There are no barriers. You don’t have to be a member of the party,” he added.

Deputy Wilkinson actually questioned the •60,349 tally accredited to him in the Daily Mail expenses list as he understood his expenses bill for 2006 amounted to •44,000. He said he would be checking this figure in Leinster House this week.

While he had no problem in telling anybody his expenses, he found it objectionable for a newspaper to request this information through the Freedom of Information Act.

“I believe I should be asked personally for my expenses.”

Deputy Brian O’Shea, meanwhile, stressed that the •52,481 payment he received were for expenses he was due for carrying out his work and not earnings.

“You have got to have a car to travel. You have got to stay overnight when you are in the Dail if you are a country TD and you have to pay for telephone expenses and all the rest of it. The bottom line as far as I am concerned is that they are the expenses you are due and I claim what is due to me,” he said.

 

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