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Oireachtas committee sitting abandoned amid row between Fine Gael and Sinn Féin

An Oireachtas committee sitting has been abandoned after a row over recent comments made by a Sin...
Newstalk
Newstalk

15.18 10 Dec 2020


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Oireachtas committee sitting abandoned amid row between Fine Gael and Sinn Féin


Newstalk
Newstalk

15.18 10 Dec 2020


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An Oireachtas committee sitting has been abandoned after a row over recent comments made by a Sinn Féin TD.

Martin Browne told Tipp FM the party must stop apologising for IRA acts, and said he had called to the houses of party members to discuss their social media posts about Sinn Féin.

It comes after a party member resigned when someone called to her house to ask her to take down tweets critical of TD Brian Stanley.

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The Public Petitions Committee today had to adjourn when Deputy Browne - the committee's chair - declined to address the issue.

Brendan Griffin and other Fine Gael TDs, meanwhile, said they wouldn't continue until he did.

Deputy Griffin asked: "As [you're the] chairman of this committee, I wonder will you take the opportunity now to explain those comments?

"They've cost an awful lot of hurt and upset to many people."

Deputy Browne responded: "Listen to the actual interview, and come back to it. Don't attribute comments that have appeared on print media.

"As I said, it isn't on the agenda, and I'm going to move on now."

Fine Gael's Eoghan Murphy argued there was a 'serious question' around the work of the committee following the remarks, and urged the chairman to repeat what he said on radio to the committee members.

He claimed that discussing the issue in private rather than public session would 'feel like censorship'.

Deputy Browne, however, insisted he will be an impartial chair of the committee - and said the committee meeting 'wasn't the forum' for the issue.

'Disappointing behaviour'

In a follow-up statement this afternoon, Deputy Browne said the behaviour of Fine Gael at the meeting was "very disappointing".

He said: "They used a media interview I carried out on TippFM earlier this week to disrupt the meeting."

Today's row comes amid the ongoing controversy over past remarks made by Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley.

Deputy Stanley is due to make a 'full personal statement' to the Dáil next week.

Deputy Browne said he made it clear in his recent interview that he "fully supports" his party colleague making that statement in the Dáil.

Reporting by Sean Defoe and Stephen McNeice
Main image: Photo of the Oireachtas Committee on Public Petitions meeting today. Image: Oireachtas TV.

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