Mary Lou McDonald hits out at her own committee

Sinn Féin deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald has criticised a committee she is a member of for failing to probe further claims by a whistleblower about former politicians allegedly evading tax.

The Public Accounts Committee has decided, following legal advice, that it will not review further information provided by Gerry Ryan, a senior official in the Department of Jobs.

Committee members voted against accepting correspondence from the whistle-blower yesterday, saying the issues fell “outside its remit”. “The committee was advised that the receipt of the document carried a degree of risk, which would arise if the correspondence became documents of the committee, thus attracting privilege,” it said.