People Before Profit TD Gino Kenny has hit back in a row with the Taoiseach over his response to a parliamentary question on medicinal cannabis this week.
Leo Varadkar was accused of being "disrespectful" after responding "same reply" to the query on financial aid for a family spending €9,000 a year to get the treatment.
Today he claimed Deputy Kenny had only posed the question in order to get a clip he could share on social media, in an interview with RTÉ Radio.
But the Dublin Mid-West TD says that was not the case - and the Taoiseach is only making things worse.
"I'm sorry if it came across that way," the Taoiseach said when asked if he was rude and dismissive.
"I wouldn't want to be dismissive of any individual case or any individual person.
"People can take a five-second clip out of context, that question had already been asked," he added, explaining the video that did the rounds on social media
This is a disgraceful way for the Taoiseach @LeoVaradkar to address a member of parliament - @Ginosocialist has the very same mandate as every other politican in the #Dail pic.twitter.com/uxVmQwUMss
— Mick Caul (@caulmick) June 12, 2019
"I think that's completely fictitious by the Taoiseach," Deputy Kenny said replying to the Taoiseach's comments.
"I have every right to ask him a question under Promised Legislation.
"What Leo Varadkar said this morning compounds the disrespect he has for this issue, not only for myself but for the families that have been campaigning for medicinal cannabis over the last three years," he added.
