Stanley says McDonald ‘abused Dail privilege to shift focus off Sinn Fein’

Brian Stanley has said Mary Lou McDonald had “abused Dail privilege” as a row between the TD and his former party deepens.

The Laois-Offaly TD accused the Sinn Fein leader of “a desperate attempt to shift the focus from her own party’s practices” on how it handled a complaint made against him.

It comes as pressure increases on Ms McDonald to steer her party through several controversies that have arisen in recent weeks, culminating in her giving a statement to the Dail on Tuesday afternoon.

Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill said that Ms McDonald’s leadership of Sinn Fein was not in question as pressure increases on her.

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly said that while the “grubbiness” of the controversies needed to be clarified, she indicated the powersharing institutions were not in immediate risk because of the “crisis” facing the party.

In the Republic, Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman said he was “not fully satisfied” by Ms McDonald’s account of how the party handled the scandals.

At the weekend, Mr Stanley resigned from the party and said he would run as an independent after a Sinn Fein internal inquiry into a complaint against him.

The party referred that complaint and a “serious” counter-allegation to the Gardai on Sunday.

While addressing several controversies faced by Sinn Fein in the Dail on Tuesday, Ms McDonald said the complainant against Mr Stanley was left “traumatised and distressed” by his actions.

Mr Stanley has dismissed the complaint against him and claimed he was subjected to a “character assassination” by a clique within the party, likening it to a kangaroo court.

In a new statement issued on Tuesday night, Mr Stanley said that there was an attempt to damage his reputation and “shift the spotlight off” Sinn Fein.

“What was also revealing from her (Mary Lou McDonald’s) statement in the Dail, is the level of double standards that now operate and pertain in Sinn Fein,” he said.

“In the interest of clarity, I again state the following: That the complaint against me, and which was not deemed to be of a criminal nature, was lodged on July 26 and not seven days later, as Sinn Fein claim.

“I also state that it was deliberately kept from me that there was even a complaint.

“That I wasn’t informed officially that there was a complaint until July 31 and this followed a letter from my solicitor to Sinn Fein to demand official confirmation as to the existence of one.

“I again welcome the fact that this matter is now with An Garda Siochana.”

Mr O’Gorman said the former Sinn Fein TD should make a statement on the nature of the complaints provided there is no active garda investigation.

Meanwhile, Ms McDonald on Tuesday addressed several other controversies that have embroiled the party in recent weeks.

These include former Sinn Fein press officer Michael McMonagle, 42, from Limewood Street, Londonderry, admitting to a series of offences, including attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

It then emerged that two other press officers, who have since resigned from the party, provided job references for McMonagle after the party suspended him amid police inquiries.

McMonagle went on to work for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) in September 2022.

It then came to light that Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O’Neill and McMonagle were both at an event hosted by the BHF in February 2023, but Ms O’Neill said she was “not aware” he was present.

On Tuesday, former senator Niall O Donnghaile revealed he quit the party after sending allegedly inappropriate text messages to a teenager.

Mr O Donnghaile, who was previously the Lord Mayor of Belfast, resigned from the Seanad in December citing the advice of a doctor.

Ms McDonald told the Dail on Tuesday that Mr O Donnghaile was suspended from the party on September 13 and the issue was referred to the PSNI and social services.

While no formal investigation followed, she said his actions were “not acceptable” and Mr O Donnghaile then resigned from the Seanad and the party.

She said the Oireachtas was not informed about the issue due to concerns about his mental health and safety, which she said she remains concerned about.

Mr O’Gorman said he was “not fully reassured” about Mary Lou McDonald’s judgment when issuing a “detailed and lengthy statement” which wished Mr O Donnghaile well for his future.

He said Ms McDonald had heaped praise on the former senator, adding that the statement “sought to conceal what was a very serious incident”.

“What I’m unclear about is why Deputy MacDonald, when Senator O Donnghaile left the party, why so much praise was heaped upon him?

“Deputy MacDonald made a point that he was undergoing a mental health crisis at the time and, look, you can understand the desire for compassion for someone in that situation.

“But in that situation, you say nothing. You don’t go out of your way to praise him.”

Ms O’Neill said on Wednesday that there was “complete due diligence” in how the party handled the O Donnghaile case.

The Sinn Fein vice president added that everything the party knows “is now on the public record”.

“As I said, from day one, we’ve set out to try to be as transparent as we can in terms of setting out all of the facts. I’ve done that in the Assembly chamber last week, Mary Lou did it again yesterday in the Dail, and that remains our approach.

“We’ve always wanted to be as frank as we possibly can with everybody.”

Ms Little-Pengelly said that the controversies are “very grubby” and people are “fed up and sick of half-truths or not-truths or issues trickling out”.

She added: “If there’s one thing that we have learned right across Northern Ireland, and indeed right across Ireland, is this idea of cover-ups or not being truthful, the lack of transparency when it comes to the safeguarding of children is deeply unacceptable.

“We are supposed to have learned the lessons from the past in terms of some of those issues, and now it is really important that everybody steps up with full transparency, absolutely honestly and transparently answers the most serious questions.”