Enda Kenny branded a ‘church mouse’

Taoiseach Enda Kenny was branded a “church mouse” for failing to bring Justice Minister Alan Shatter into line on penalty points, as reform of the discredited system began in earnest.

Fianna Fáil’s Dara Calleary levelled the charge at Mr Kenny after he refused to back calls for Mr Shatter to personally apologise to whistleblower Maurice McCabe for wrongly stating McCabe had declined to take part in an inquiry into the fixed penalty affair.

The row intensified as the working group tasked with implementing the 37 recommendations of the Garda Inspectorate report on the penalty points system met for the first time yesterday .