Collison-backed Progress Ireland with secret Jack Chambers meeting
Collison brothers-backed lobbyists Progress Ireland had an off the books meeting with Fianna Fáil finance minister Jack Chambers that they didn’t declare – as required by law – on the lobbying register.
Collison brothers-backed Progress Ireland has disputed government’s account of its secret meeting with Jack Chambers.
It’s understood that Progress Ireland executive director Seán Keyes has been boasting about his close relationship with Chambers in recent months, bragging about how invested the minister is in Progress Ireland’s policy positions.
But Progress Ireland tried keeping a meeting with Chambers off the lobbying register – as required by law – before updating the organisation’s returns after speaking to The Ditch.
‘For completeness’
Correspondence released to The Ditch under freedom of information legislation shows Keyes planning a meeting at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on 23 July to discuss social housing, land readjustment and housing infrastructure.
The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform confirmed to The Ditch the meeting took place. “The topics discussed included the role and work of Progress Ireland, MetroLink and housing policy work underway at Progress Ireland,” said a department official.
The attendees were minister Jack Chambers, his adviser Shane Smyth, a department official and Progress Ireland’s Seán Keyes, said the official.
The meeting was originally set to take place on July 22 but was rescheduled to the following day.
Progress Ireland didn’t declare it in the lobbying register.
Director Keyes first told The Ditch his lobbying returns were up to date. He said he attended the meeting for 10 minutes but recused himself so another meeting could take place between the department and Fiona Ross, chair of the MetroLink steering committee.
Asked if he was claiming that he, a lobbyist, had arranged a meeting with the minister for infrastructure to just immediately recuse himself from it, Keyes said, “Yes, that’s exactly what I did.”
The Ditch told Keyes that the department had already confirmed what was discussed at the meeting, which included housing policy, to which he replied, “Well put what I’ve just told you to them.”
Chambers is a designated official under the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015, meaning Keyes needed to inform the lobbying register that he was discussing housing with him.
After the call Keyes wrote to The Ditch.
“On 23 July I met the minister for about 10 minutes. I introduced Progress Ireland and how we work. I said I would not go into any specific matters, and that we would make a pre-budget submission regarding the other items on the agenda.
“The 58-word agenda I sent in advance named specific proposals and SIPO's test is broad. So, for completeness, we have added the agenda and the meeting to our lobbying return for May to August 2026,” he said.
The lobbyists, funded by Stripe co-founders Patrick and John Collison, discussed deregulating the housing market to allow homeowners to rent out de facto garden sheds to the public. Martin’s office kept no minutes of the meeting.
In May The Ditch reported that a senior civil servant sent a confidential draft document “on a strictly confidential basis” to Progress Ireland’s Sam Enright.
