It is odd that Irish politicians have resorted to the mantra “…no favours asked and no favours given�, in relation to the disclosure of payments, of one kind or another, to them. As an implied statement of law it is mistaken. A bribe is a payment for a favour, not a payment in return for a favour. Whether the favour is delivered or not is irrelevant (The Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889 and The Prevention of Corruption Acts 1906 and 1916).

Section 2 of the Act of 1916 established the rebuttable presumption of a corrupt payment where it is made by a person holding or seeking to hold a contract with [..the relevant body] to [..a director or officer or employee of the relevant body].

In short, the intentions of the payee and the recipient are not matters requiring proof by the prosecution in a trial, nor is the fact of delivery of a “favour�.

(The 1906 Act extended the offences in the Public Bodies Corrupt Practices Act 1889 to employees in private employment. Private employers are affected only by the 1889 Act).