Three long-standing Fianna Fáil TDs have called for the immediate publication of a report on the party’s botched presidential campaign, as Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said recent commentary on it has been “extremely disappointing”.
The three TDs say that leaks on the report point to a “lack of candour within Fianna Fáil”, adding that “accountability is now essential if we are to restore trust and credibility”.
Kildare South’s Sean Ó Fearghaíl, Limerick City’s Willie O’Dea and Donegal’s Pat the Cope Gallagher said on Monday that the report should be immediately released to members of the parliamentary party and the wider organisation.
In a statement on Monday night, Mr Martin said he had not yet received the report and the terms of reference for it were agreed by the parliamentary party.
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“In the terms of reference, it was agreed that the party leader would receive the report once the review was completed and it would subsequently be shared and discussed with the Parliamentary Party,” the statement said.
“The Committee is finalising the report. The party wants to be absolutely clear that the party leader has not yet received the report.
It added that Mr Martin “has been keen to allow the review committee to do its work independently”.
“The commentary of the past week has been extremely disappointing, selective and inaccurate.
“The leader takes exception, in particular, to some of what has been written over the weekend which has been based on false assertions.
“A meeting of the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party will of course be convened to discuss the full report, including its findings and recommendations for the future, when it has been received.”
Earlier, Mr Ó Fearghaíl, Mr O’Dea and Mr Gallagher said TDs and Senators must be given time to read the report in full, reflect on its conclusions and prepare for a “frank and informed” discussion at a special meeting of the parliamentary party.
“The continued leaking of material from the report is damaging Fianna Fáil’s reputation with the public and our supporters. The leaks have undermined trust across the party. These leaks are unacceptable,” a statement from the three outlines.
“The leaks point to a lack of candour within Fianna Fáil. This lack of candour contributed to the current debacle and seriously weakened confidence in our internal decision-making. Accountability is now essential if we are to restore trust and credibility,” it continues.
“We must not allow this ongoing controversy to overshadow the historic milestone that is Fianna Fáil’s centenary. The public expects better from us. We insist that the full report be published now, without any delay. Then the facts can be faced squarely, and responsibility accepted.”
As of Monday morning, the full report was understood to have not yet been shared either with the wider parliamentary party or with senior figures including the Taoiseach.
The review was prompted amid the anger and embarrassment that followed former Dublin GAA manager Jim Gavin’s dramatic departure from the presidential race, which left Fianna Fáil without a candidate in what effectively became a contest between now President Catherine Connolly and Fine Gael’s Heather Humphreys.
Mr Gavin stepped aside after it emerged he owed €3,300 to a former tenant, who had rented an apartment from him 16 years ago.
The review into the implosion of the Fianna Fáil campaign was chaired by senior barrister Ciarán O’Loughlin and its panel includes TDs Tom Brabazon and Eamon Scanlon and Senator Margaret Murphy O’Mahony. The review’s results could pose a threat to Mr Martin’s leadership, among some frustration from TDs who felt they were implicitly pressured to back Mr Gavin as he was the favoured candidate of the party leader.
It is understood there was some anger among allies of the Taoiseach over the weekend, over what some felt was the “selective leaking” of aspects of the review.
The Irish Mail on Sunday reported that Deirdre Gillane, Mr Martin’s top adviser and one of the most influential figures in the Coalition Government, had been “aware” of Mr Gavin’s dispute with a tenant in advance of him being formally chosen as the party’s presidential candidate.
The Irish Times understands that Ms Gillane did receive a phone call from a journalist on September 5th, four days before Mr Gavin was formally selected, where she was asked if she was aware of a dispute Mr Gavin had had with a tenant and if Fianna Fáil had done its due diligence on its prospective candidate.
It is understood that specific details including the name of the tenant and the nature of the dispute were not shared with Ms Gillane. Fianna Fáil described the call as “speculative and non-specific in nature”. According to those familiar with Ms Gillane’s account of the call, she was told by the journalist that he was going away to work on the story and would be back with a formal query.
On September 8th, the Fianna Fáil press office received a query from the same journalist which inquired about Mr Gavin’s property interests and a “particular issue arising with a tenant when he was a landlord”. Mr Gavin was formally chosen as a candidate by the parliamentary party that evening.
Fianna Fáil deputy leader Jack Chambers has previously said that questions about a dispute with a tenant were put to Mr Gavin in September, and that Mr Gavin had denied being aware of an issue with a former tenant.
A copy of the review has been shared with a solicitor acting for Mr Gavin, in advance of it being shared with the Fianna Fáil party.
Malcolm Byrne, the Fianna Fáil TD for Wicklow-Wexford, said the report on the presidential campaign “has to come out this week”.
“We need to draw a line under this,” Mr Byrne told Newstalk’s Anton Savage show on Sunday. Mr Byrne said it “would be a serious issue” if a senior adviser to Mr Martin had been privy to the fact that there was a problem relating to a former tenancy of Mr Gavin.
“We were assured that due diligence was done on Jim Gavin. So there are obviously questions that will have to be asked about who knew what, where and when. We will see that this week, and I think until I get a chance to read the report, I’m not going to speculate on that,” Mr Byrne said.
