Justice Minister pleads innocence

The Minister for Justice, John O'Donoghue, says he did nothing wrong in relation to the court case which led to the resignation of Bobby Molloy.

However, a two-page statement from the Minister shows that Mr Molloy's involvement in the criminal case goes back much longer than originally thought.

A trawl through the Justice Department was conducted following this morning's revelation from Justice Phillip O'Sullivan that he received a phone call from a Department of Justice official on behalf of Bobby Molloy.

It culminated in the statement, which outlines the complicated process which led to the call to the judge.

It confirms that an official did phone the judge and ask for a home phone number, following contact from Bobby Molloy's department.

However, this official had no knowledge that this was related to a criminal case. It also shows that Bobby Molloy had passed a letter to John O'Donoghue with regard to this case as long ago as January last year.

Meanwhile, the Taoiseach is supporting his Justice Minister saying he did nothing wrong. He's also defending his decision not to call on Bobby Molloy to resign last night. "A person is entitled a bit of space," he said.