‘Sinn Féin dropped the ball’ – McDonald ‘furious’ over references for child sex offender
The Sinn Féin staff members that provided work references for an ex-colleague who was being investigated for child sex offences acted “unilaterally, irresponsibly and despicably”, Mary Lou McDonald has said. Sinn Féin has promised to overhaul its governance structures after the incident, which Deputy McDonald has today described as ‘unacceptable’. It emerged in recent weeks that former Sinn Féin press officer Michael McMonagle was given work references by two of his former colleagues after he informed the party that he was under investigation for serious child sex offences. He then used those references to secure a position as Communications Manager for the British Heart Foundation. He has since pleaded guilty to 14 charges, including attempted sexual communication with a child and attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity. Sinn Féin has said it became aware of the work references two days after his guilty plea, with the two men who gave them resigning with immediate effect. Credit to : Newstalk