Beaten, spat at and harassed: Buttimer tells Dáil in homophobia debate

The debate about homophobia in Ireland took centre stage in the Dáil with Fine Gael TD Jerry Buttimer describing how he was “beaten, spat at, chased, harassed and mocked because of who I am”.

The Cork South Central TD said he spent most of his life “struggling... in my country that I love” as he and other TDs raised concerns about an €85,000 settlement by RTÉ over comments about homophobia.

As the controversy over the payout deepens, Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte was forced to once again insist he could not interfere in legal or editorial decisions made by the national broadcaster.