FINE GAEL TDS have defended their presidential candidate Heather Humphreys when questioned on why she failed to declare that the credit union she formerly managed took legal proceedings over loan defaulting.

Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon hit out at Catherine Connolly for her “duplicity” in not disclosing that she represented financial institutions, but suggested the context around Humphreys role was different due to her well known former role.

“Everybody knew that Heather Humphreys was a manager of a credit union. Credit unions work with communities, for the people, by the people, and everyone knows what’s involved with being a credit union manager,” he said.

He said everybody knew the role Humphreys had before she was a politician, stating that the public were not aware of that Connolly represented the banks in cases when she made speeches about repossessions in the Dáil. 

Fine Gael TDs at Stephen's Green in Dublin this morning. Sophie Finn / The Journal Sophie Finn / The Journal / The Journal

Health Minister Jennifer Carroll MacNeill said: “The credit union is at the centre of the community. There is nobody in Cavan-Monaghan who doesn’t know that she was a credit union manager.”

Fine Gael have rounded on Connolly in this campaign over her failure to declare the work she did representing the banks as a barrister during the economic crash.

Humphreys admitted earlier this week that while she was manager of Cootehill Credit Union in Cavan “legal proceedings took place” against loan defaulters.

Legal documents reviewed by The Journal show a small number taken by Cootehill Credit Union to the High Court over loan repayments around the time of the financial crash.

There is no record of her declaring her role in these cases before speaking on relevant topics in the Dáil, such as in 2013 when she spoke during a debate on a motion about mortgage arrears.

When this was put to Heydon, he said that Connolly “went out of her way” to criticise financial institutions.

“She didn’t need to make those statements,” he said.

Heydon suggested that Connolly did not need to work for financial institutions as a barrister, going against the Bar Council of Ireland who have said the cab-rank rule prevents barristers from declining cases for personal reasons. 

“She had the option not to take that work, she took that work,” he said.

In an interview with The Candidate podcast yesterday, Connolly dismissed the suggestion that she should have declared the work that she formerly carried out in such debates, stating it was the “daftest thing ever” to make such a suggestion.

With additional reporting from Christina Finn.