VOTEGATE FINISHED

Inquiry not happening after Dáil’s dissolution

HIGH-PROFILE Fianna Fáil TDs Timmy Dooley and Niall Collins will not face an investigation for their involvement in the Oireachtas voting scandal, because the Dáil has been dissolved.

Party leader Micheál Martin said yesterday that he wanted to resolve the issues, but that Leo Varadkar had dissolved the 32nd Dáil before a conclusion to the inquiry could be reached.

He said: ‘In terms of a new Dáil, a new Dáil is different...

‘The Taoiseach did write to me before, saying he wanted these issues resolved and he made a point of it, at the meeting last week. We expected that, we said, “Yes, they should be resolved before the Dáil is dissolved”. Yet the Taoiseach went ahead and dissolved it. That is where we are now.’

He defended his decision to remove the two TDs from the party front bench, but refused to rule out adding them to any potential government. The Fianna Fáil leader said: ‘First of all, I don’t think I was precipitous. I think I did the right thing; it had to be done.

‘They both apologised, which indicated that they both accepted and understood my actions in terms of removing both from the front bench.

‘Obviously, I don’t think any leader announced their cabinet before a general election. We are going to the people to fight a very closely fought campaign. As far as I am concerned, we want to maximise the seats that we can win.’

Of Fianna Fáil TD Lisa Chambers’s involvement in the scandal, the Corkman said this ‘was dealt with by the Members’ Interests Committee – that is closed in that context’.

The row kicked off after Mr Collins voted six times for Mr Dooley, who was not present in the Dáil chamber, in October.

Ms Chambers was the subject of a complaint after footage showed seven votes being attributed to Mr Dooley while she was sitting in his place in a Dáil voting block last year. Mr Dooley said he was in chamber at the time.

‘They both apologised’