Social Democrats split on whether to allow suspended TD Eoin Hayes back into party

Eoin Hayes was suspended from the Social Democrats after it emerged that he did not sell his shares in US company Palantir until a month after he was elected as a Dublin city councillor. Picture: Stephen Collins

The Social Democrats are split on whether to bring suspended TD Eoin Hayes back into the fold, with concerns that Sinéad Gibney could leave party if he is readmitted.

On Wednesday, Ms Gibney repeatedly declined to rule out leaving the party if Mr Hayes was readmitted to the Social Democrats parliamentary party.

Ms Gibney, a TD for Dublin Rathdown, said she would not be commenting on “hypotheticals”, despite being repeatedly asked if she would leave the party if Mr Hayes was re-admitted.

Mr Hayes was suspended from the Social Democrats after it emerged that he did not sell his shares in US company Palantir until a month after he was elected as a Dublin city councillor.

This contradicted information previously given by Mr Hayes to the effect that he had sold the shares in the company, where he worked from 2015 to 2017, before he entered politics.

Palantir has supplied software and technology to the Israel Defense Forces.

Other TDs within the party have flagged concerns about readmitting Mr Hayes, with one saying they would not be comfortable with his return.

“If I had my way, I’d be telling him to sling his hook,” the TD said.

However, there is a limit to what the party can do, with some saying that total expulsion is a bridge too far for Mr Hayes’s offence.

“The danger is that it eats up the party. We need to come to an agreement. Eoin Hayes cannot be the thing that splits us apart," a source said.

There is also a recognition that the undefined nature of Mr Hayes's suspension means that the Social Democrats are likely to be dogged by questions surrounding a possible return which takes focus away from the work being carried out by other TDs.

There is an interest from some in drawing a line under the situation sooner rather than later so that attention could return to the daily work at hand.

Whatever the outcome, the party needs to remember that its values must remain at its core, a source said.

Other TDs were happy on Wednesday to keep the issue on the long finger rather than face into the tough decisions with some just months into the role of TD.

There was an overall view that any decision made would be done as a collective.

“It is a deeply difficult issue for us,” a TD said.