Justin McNulty: Helicopter trip should be declared, says ex-watchdog

Justin McNulty was suspended from the SDLP last month after leaving Stormont early to attend a GAA match

A helicopter trip taken by a Northern Ireland assembly member to attend a Gaelic football match should be "fully declared", a former standards watchdog has said.

Justin McNulty left the first sitting of the new assembly last month to attend the GAA game in which the team he manages was playing.

He was suspended from the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) in February over the matter.

MLAs must publicly declare benefits.

Sir Alistair Graham, former chair of a Westminster committee on standards in public life, said the helicopter journey should be recorded on the assembly's register of interests.

Mr McNulty, who was appointed Laois GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) manager in October, was approached for comment.

It later emerged he had travelled at least part of the more than 200-mile journey to the match, in County Wexford, by helicopter.

MLAs are required to record on a public register their financial and non-financial interests, such as employment, gifts and hospitality.

Guidance states they should update their interests "within 28 days of the change occurring".

Sir Alistair said the helicopter trip "clearly is either a gift or a benefit which should be fully declared".

• SDLP suspend MLA who left Stormont for GAA game

He said Mr McNulty should "personally refer himself" to the assembly standards commissioner if he believes the trip does not need to be registered.

"As there's clearly been publicity around this particular event, and there's question marks over registration, I would have thought the sensible thing for him to do was to personally refer himself to the standards commissioner so that the matter can be fully investigated," he said.

"And if he feels he's done nothing wrong, then this would deal with any adverse comments that have been made publicly."

Sir Alistair Graham said he believed the helicopter trip should be declared

On his register of interests, Mr McNulty said his role in Laois GAA involved an "evening and weekend commitment for which expenses will be covered".

He recorded this as an "unremunerated" interest, rather than under the "employment and earnings" section of the register.

An SDLP spokesman said: "All MLAs are obliged to keep their assembly register of interests record up to date. As Mr McNulty has had the SDLP whip suspended, this is therefore a matter for him to address."

Mr McNulty, who represents the Newry and Armagh constituency, was approached for comment, as was Laois GAA.

A Northern Ireland Assembly spokeswoman said MLAs have "sole responsibility for complying with the requirement to register their interests".

"If someone believes that an MLA has not properly registered their interests in the register of members' interests, they may make a complaint to the commissioner for standards," she added.