THE CHIEF of Europe’s audit body has distanced himself from its Irish member, Eoin O’Shea, over his lobbying against the selection of Kevin Cardiff to succeed him next year.
A committee of the European Parliament has rejected the nomination of Mr Cardiff, secretary general of the Department of Finance, to Ireland’s seat on the European Court of Auditors.
The nomination goes before a vote of the wider European Parliament next month. While the parliament has never before overturned the opinion of the committee, political sources believe the disclosure of Mr O’Shea’s intervention may improve Mr Cardiff’s prospects.
It emerged the day after the committee hearing that Mr O’Shea had sent disparaging e-mails about Mr Cardiff to two of the committee’s most senior members. Mr O’Shea has apologised but his intervention went down badly with Vitor Caldeira, president of the court.
“The president of the European Court of Auditors regrets Mr O’Shea’s actions related to the proposed nomination of Mr K Cardiff, and takes note of his apology,” said a spokesman for Mr Caldeira.
“All members of the court must conduct themselves in line with their duties as foreseen in the treaty and the members’ code of conduct.”
The code says members of the court should refrain from making any public comment that might involve it in any controversy.
However, the court’s spokesman would not say whether Mr Caldeira might take any action in relation to the affair. Neither would he say whether Mr Caldeira considered the matter closed in the light of Mr O’Shea’s apology.
Mr O’Shea wrote e-mails lobbying against Mr Cardiff’s nomination to the centre-right and socialist co-ordinators of the budgetary control committee on October 6th. In public, however, Mr O’Shea’s attitude to the top official in the Department of Finance was markedly different. He told Irish reporters two weeks ago that he wished Mr Cardiff well in his confirmation hearing before the parliament.
The chairman of the budgetary control committee, Dutch liberal MEP Jan Mulder, said yesterday that he still has not seen the e-mails. While he will decide whether any action is warranted after reviewing the mails, he said the vote on Mr Cardiff’s nomination still stands.
Labour TD Joe Costello, chairman of the Joint Committee on European Union Affairs, where the O’Shea e-mails were revealed on Thursday, said the e-mails and the transcript of the meeting were sent to Mr Mulder last night. The delay was necessitated by the need to compile the transcript of the committee’s proceedings.
Copies are also being sent to Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore and Minister of State for European Affairs Lucinda Creighton.
Mr Mulder told RTÉ Radio’s News at One that the budget committee could decide to hold “a new hearing” on Mr Cardiff’s application if members requested it and a majority was in favour.
In Dublin, the Government is holding firm in its backing for Mr Cardiff, a spokesman confirmed last night. “The Government has confidence in Kevin Cardiff as being eminently qualified for the position and we will observe the process as it continues,” the spokesman said.
Mr Kenny said in Cork yesterday he was confident Mr Cardiff would be appointed. “Kevin Cardiff has outstanding qualifications in terms of this job – it is a matter for the European Parliament in full session to make its judgment,” he said.
Asked how he could justify nominating Mr Cardiff after the error in the Department of Finance when €3.6 billion was miscalculated, Mr Kenny said: “This is not the first occasion where double accounting took place during audits – not just in Ireland but abroad.”
