Laois TD Brian Stanley has accused Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald of ‘abusing Dail privilege’ in statements she made about him today.
Speaking in the Dail today, the Sinn Fein leader McDonald said a woman who made a complaint against Laois TD Brian Stanley was ‘traumatised and distressed’.
McDonald said that the details of both the initial complaint, which Deputy Stanley denies, and the counter allegation are ‘very serious’.
She said: “The complaint made against Deputy Stanley is very serious.
“The complaint relates to an incident that took place in October 2023 and relates to Deputy Stanley’s personal behaviour leaving the complainant in her words, traumatised and distressed.
“In the course of the inquiry into the complaint against Deputy Stanley he raised a counter allegation against the complainant, and a very serious one.
“The allegation caused deep concern and Deputy Stanley was advised he should go to the gardaí. He chose not to.”
But in a statement issued today, Mr Stanley has hit out at his former party leader.
He said: “Mary Lou Mc Donald abused Dáil privilege in a desperate attempt to shift the focus from her own party’s practices regarding a ‘complaint’ against me, the contents of which I refute.
“This comes after days of inaccurate statements and insinuations from Sinn Féin, along with selective briefings delivered with the clear intention of damaging my reputation and to shift the spotlight off the party.
“And all this, while a Garda investigation is ongoing on foot of serious matters I brought forward.
“What was also revealing from her statement in the Dáil, is the level of double standards that now operate and pertain in Sinn Féin.
“In the interest of clarity, I again state the following:
“That the complaint against me, and which was not deemed to be of a criminal nature, was lodged on the 26 July and not 7 days later as Sinn Féin claim.
“I also state that it was deliberately kept from me that there was even a complaint.
“That I wasn’t informed officially that there was a complaint until the 31 July and this followed a letter from my solicitor to Sinn Féin to demand official confirmation as to the existence of one.
“I again welcome the fact that this matter is now with An Garda Síochána.”
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