Lobbying Sligo councillor Joe Queenan refuses to resign seat after ‘edited’ RTÉ exposé

The Sligo councillor at the centre of this week’s RTÉ exposé has said he will not be resigning his council seat.

Joe Queenan who resigned from Fianna Fáil in the immediate aftermath of the RTÉ investigation into political lobbying, apologised for failing to complete his statutory declaration for 2015 correctly, and for mentioning a potential investment in an agri-feed business.

But in a statement, the Enniscrone-based councillor insisted that “the edited footage does not give a fair and honest account” of the conversation between himself and the undercover reporter.

And he denied that he had sought investment in return for helping the fictitious company with the planning process.

Mr Queenan claims that on at least 13 occasions he had told the reporter that the planning occasion was an impartial one and that he could not guarantee her company success.

And he claims that on at least 14 occasions he told her he did not want money.

He said in the course of their conversation he had told her that “it will cost you nothing” and that he would work with her company “free gratis and for nothing”.

In an interview on Ocean FM radio Mr Queenan claimed he had been entrapped.

He said it had been an error on his part to mention a possible investment in a business and he wanted to apologise for that but “I was led in that direction”.

Mr Queenan said there was no plan in place for the business.

“I was speaking in a hypothetical situation. I am sorry I ever brought it up and I apologise to the people for saying that. It was an error on my behalf.”

But the councillor insisted that this had nothing to do with the planning process and he said he had not looked for any inducement or benefit.

He said he had agreed to meet the undercover reporter for 10 minutes in the foyer of the Sligo Park Hotel “for courtesy’s sake really to see what she was talking about”.

But RTÉ moved the meeting to a room in another hotel.

He had gone to the meeting to discuss future investment in the west Sligo area “and with no intention of looking for anything”.

Asked why he had resigned from the party, Mr Queenan told Ocean FM that he was not whiter than white, and he was apologising for an error on two grounds — for not completing his ethics form properly and for mentioning the potential investment.

He said he had resigned from Fianna Fáil following a three-minute phonecall with the general secretary.

At the end of it they had agreed that it would be in the best interests of the party that he resign until he had an opportunity to clear his name, he said.

Pressed on why he was not resigning from the council, Mr Queenan said the people would decide his fate at the next local election.