Michelle O’Neill has declined to answer a series MLAs’ questions on the Sinn Féin safeguarding scandal in a heated Stormont committee session which was later described as a “farce” and “pathetic.”
The first minister insisted she was being “open” and “transparent” but often raised objections to the line of questioning from members of the Executive Office scrutiny committee.
It was the Sinn Féin deputy leader’s second appearance before the committee this month. Following her previous October 2 appearance, she was forced to correct the record after wrongly claiming she had had no contact with representatives of the British Heart Foundation at a Stormont event last year.
Footage emerged less that 48 hours later showing her speaking to the chief executive of the charity that was employing former Sinn Féin press officer and suspected sex offender Michael McMonagle.
Ms O’Neill has insisted she did not see McMonagle, who later confessed in court to a series of sex offences, as he stood just feet away, filming the Sinn Féin deputy leader alongside young Dáithí Mac Gabhann and family, who were leading an organ transplant campaign.
Much of the 45-minutes of the first minister’s appearance involved wrangling about what kind of questions could be asked, with committee chair Paula Bradshaw and the clerk intervening at times to tell MLAs that their remit was largely restricted to the work of the Executive Office.
On several occasions, the Sinn Féin deputy leader, who said she had taken her own legal advice, countered that questions being asked were “party political” and “not the remit of this committee”.
She also said during her last appearance before the committee “lines between ministerial and party responsibilities were blurred” and that she had already answered many questions around the safeguarding scandals that have plagued her party for more than three weeks.
“I’ve answered many media queries. I’ve spoken extensively about the issues in which you wish to speak about today. I’ve been open,” she told the committee.
Ms O’Neill said she was “genuinely trying to be as open and transparent and as helpful to members as I possibly can”.
She said “happy to answer any genuine issues as first minister”.
However, little if anything emerged from the fractious meeting.
Fellow Sinn Féin MLA Carál Ní Chuilín said the committee was being treated as a “political football”.
In a brief statement afterwards, DUP committee member Brian Kingston said the first minister demonstrated a “lack of commitment to answer questions”.
“The failure to answer any questions speaks volumes about Sinn Féin’s commitment to the truth,” he said.
“The public will not be fooled by that performance of legal bluster and the questions will not go away.”
SDLP committee member Sinéad McLaughlin later described the meeting as “nothing short of a farce”.
She said MLAs’ questions were “shut down due to interpretation of legal advice”.
“At a time when there are many outstanding questions surrounding Sinn Féin scandals and their handling of recent affairs, what took place today was a disgraceful shutting down of scrutiny,” she said.
“If the committee is not the place for the minister to answer these questions then we must immediately establish the correct forum and compel the minister to respond.”
SDLP leader of the opposition Matthew O’Toole said on X: “What a shaming farce in the TEO Committee today. Private pre-meetings between the chair and FM, elected MLAs prevented from doing scrutiny with spurious citing of legal advice, an SF member running interference. Pathetic.”
