CEANN COMHAIRLE VERONA Murphy’s lack of Irish has been called into question after the Taoiseach accused Mary Lou McDonald of telling lies while speaking Irish in the Dáil. 

The Sinn Féin leader has since written to the Ceann Comhairle asking that she “formally follow up” with the Taoiseach to “ensure” he withdraws the remark.

During a heated exchange on housing in the Dáil today, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said to Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald:

“Tá an Teachta Dála ag insint bréaga arís.”

This translates to: “The TD is telling lies again”. 

Under the rules of the Dáil, TDs are restricted in what they can say about their fellow TDs. Among the restrictions, TDs must not state that another member is guilty of “being deceitful”.

McDonald asked to raise a point of order and asked for the Taoiseach to withdraw his comment:

“The Taoiseach took advantage perhaps of you not following. He called me a liar. Bhí mé ag insint an fhírinne [I was telling the truth]. He said through Gaeilge so I would like him to remove that from the record, thank you.”

The Ceann Comhairle then asked the Taoiseach to withdraw what he said “if he made those remarks”.

Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy

“Did you call Deputy McDonald a liar?” she asked.

Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty then got involved and told the Ceann Comhairle that the Taoiseach “took advantage” of her by saying it in Irish.

“I can’t rule on what I didn’t hear,” the Ceann Comhairle said.

“I accept that you believe it was said, the Taoiseach has said he hasn’t said it. We can look back,” she added.

Doherty then addressed the Taoiseach directly: “You took advantage of the fact the Ceann Comhairle has no Irish…It is absolutely disgraceful.”

Murphy then asked the Taoiseach again to withdraw the remarks if he said them. 

The Taoiseach said he did not call McDonald a liar. 

Michéal Martin

Doherty again said he was taking advantage of the Ceann Comhairle and added: “You are taking advantage of the Irish language.”

The Ceann Comhairle told Doherty he was being disrespectful to her as the chair, for which he then apologised.

She then told McDonald to make a complaint in writing if she wished and that it would be dealt with. 

On Wednesday evening, McDonald did write to the Ceann Comhairle to formally request that the Taoiseach correct the Dáil record.

However, a spokesperson for the Taoiseach doubled down on the remarks this evening and argued that the calls for Martin to correct the record were a “distraction tactic” from Sinn Féin.

He said the Opposition party wished to distract from remarks the Taoiseach had made in relation to meetings Sinn Féin’s housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin has had with housing developers.

The spokesperson said these meetings, which the Taoiseach described as lobbying efforts, exposed Sinn Féin’s “hypocrisy”.