Mary Lou McDonald is acting the public interest

Deputy Mary Lou McDonald was correct to act in the public interest by using Dáil privilege to name politicians who were alleged in a civil servant’s report to have been linked to off-shore Ansbacher accounts.

The Oireachtas Committee on Procedures and Privileges has concluded that she abused her parliamentary privilege. It said her utterances were “in the nature of being defamatory” and she should not have named the politicians.

There are still questions to be answered with regard to the manner in which the original civil servant’s report was investigated but it now appears that these questions will not even be asked.

If the politicians who were named were blameless then their good names would be vindicated by a proper investigation of all the matters concerned.

Any attempt to restrict the use of Dáil privilege to name individuals as Mary Lou McDonald has done will be contrary to the interests of the people.

Edward Horgan

Newtown

Castletroy

Limerick