Irish Sports Council member wins High Court challenge

A member of the Irish Sports Council has won a High Court challenge against an investigation into allegations of wrongdoing.

John Byrne was accused of interfering in the funding process of the Football Association of Ireland.

Mr Justice Michael Peart describes John Byrne as a man who has given his professional life to sport.

He was a director of the FAI until 2011 and in 2009 he was appointed by the then Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism to the Irish Sports Council.

The sports council’s appointed former Director of Corporate Affairs Paul Appleby to conduct a fact finding mission into the alleged irregularities.

But the judge has overturned that appointment on the basis that the Council acted beyond its statutory powers.

He also noted the implications of such an investigation for John Byrne’s reputation and the not easily contained whiff of sulphur it carries.