Fine Gael TD set to escape disciplinary action

Maverick Fine Gael TD Peter Matthews is likely to escape disciplinary action despite helping plunge his party into ridicule.

The usually publicity hungry backbench TD went to ground yesterday after farcical scenes in the finance committee — of which he is a member — saw the Government lose a vote in highly embarrassing circumstances.

Colleagues indicated they held Mr Matthews — a self-styled banking expert — responsible for the slapstick scenes, with Fine Gael TD Liam Twomey branding him “naive”.