Rabbitte: No evidence of split in republicanism

Labour party leader Pat Rabbitte has claimed there was no indication that the alleged IRA money-laundering ring currently being investigated on both sides of the border and murder of Belfast man Robert McCartney signified a split in republicanism.

“I believe it is a coherent, cohesive, unified single movement,” Mr Rabbitte said.

He said voters all across the island would now be forced to reassess their opinions and motives ahead of by-elections in the Republic and the British general election.

“The fact that we did bite our lips and that we did offer this encouragement over more than a decade now has had a corrosive effect on our own democracy. There’s absolutely no doubt about that,” he said.

“Even the most gullible citizen who voted as a signal of encouragement to the peace process development that I talked about must now be asking themselves the most profound questions.”

Mr Rabbitte said Sinn Féin’s political strategy remained unknown.

He said questions had to be asked on all sides as to how republicans intended to move forward.

“Are they planning to contest the democratic space on an equal basis as the rest of us or do they have an ideology that means an overthrow of this state and an overthrow of the northern state that will lead to a Sinn Féin government on both parts of the state?” he asked on RTE radio.