Ministers urge John Delaney to break silence on ticketing scandal
Patrick O’Donovan, the junior sports minister, has backed the call from Agriculture Minister Michael Creed that anybody with information on the case should speak with Brazilian police as well as the inquiry in Ireland.
Earlier this week, Mr Creed said Mr Delaney, who is also vice-president of the Olympic Council of Ireland, must “live up to the spirit” of the OCI’s commitment to assist the Irish inquiry.
Yesterday morning, Mr Creed said Mr Delaney must confirm that he will co-operate, if asked.
And, while declining to name any individual, when asked about Mr Delaney at the launch of the inquiry’s terms of reference later yesterday, Mr O’Donovan repeated the view.
“We would fully expect from now on anybody who has any knowledge or any interest in this investigation would fully co-operate in it,” he said.
“We’re not of a mind to be naming individuals, but we would expect that anybody who has any level of knowledge in relation to this issue would co-operate.”
The ministerial pressure for Mr Delaney to publicly comment on the Olympics ticket-touting controversy came after he was named alongside five other individuals by Brazilian police on Sunday as people of interest to them as he is one of “the big guys in the OCI”.
Meanwhile, at least three OCI member groups, including one of the “top five” sports organisations in the country, have contacted a government TD to say they want Pat Hickey permanently removed.
Speaking to the Irish Examiner after the OCI’s executive committee failed to fully back Mr Hickey on Monday, Fine Gael TD Noel Rock said the concern among some of the group’s senior officials is being repeated among grassroots organisations.
Mr Rock said three of these organisations — including one of the biggest in the country — have specifically said they now want Mr Hickey to resign permanently from his role.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
