Bitter irony for O’Brien if INM has to stump up over privacy breach

Denis O’Brien can feel the pain of the Isle of Man 19. Both he and the 19 individuals had their privacy breached. In Mr O’Brien’s case, the basis for breaching the privacy of his banking affairs was due to the public interest. Yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled that it cannot interfere with an Oireachtas decision that effectively rubber-stamped the breach of Mr O’Brien’s privacy under Dáil privilege in 2015.

Mr O’Brien had sought recourse in the courts to right what he saw as a wrong. And now the courts, including the highest in the land, have responded that he was wrong to think that his rights were breached.