CEANN COMHAIRLE John O’Donoghue, the subject of mounting criticism for spending on foreign travel, has maintained that his expression of sincere regret this week amounted to an “apology”.
Mr O’Donoghue, in his first public comments on the controversy, yesterday contended that he had not entered public life for gain or to make a profit and, as a minister, had behaved at all times with “good faith and probity”.
Speaking in Listowel, where he was attending the annual racing festival, the Ceann Comhairle again expressed sincere regret over some of the high costs associated with his foreign travel when he was minister for arts, sports and tourism between 2002 and 2007.
Items of expenditure included the use of the Government jet to return to a constituency event in Kerry; a €250 water taxi ride in Venice and €900-a-night hotel stays in Venice and Paris.
Asked to respond to Opposition criticism that he failed to make a proper apology, Mr O’Donoghue stopped short of an overt apology but did suggest that he had done as much in the letter he sent to TDs on Monday.
“Insofar as one regrets something, I think that is an apology,” he said.
Mr O’Donoghue refused to comment on a call by Tipperary South Fianna Fáil TD Mattie McGrath that he should step down from his position chairing a committee on Oireachtas reform.
He said he would “let the general public” decide if he had been singled out for unfair attention over expenses, while he also said he had “no idea how long” the current controversy would last.
Fine Gael and the Labour Party said one of the main reasons they had not called for his resignation was that he was not the only Fianna Fáil minister who had racked up huge travel bills and that expenses of that kind were part of a culture.
Privately, however, both parties indicated that another key reason was that he was an excellent chairman of the Dáil who had been very accommodating to the Opposition and that the controversy did not touch on his present role.
Fine Gael TD Leo Varadkar last night said he did not think it was appropriate for Mr O Donoghue to remain in that role.
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny yesterday explained why he had not called for him to step aside but had made the less onerous demand of a fuller apology.
“They illustrate what has been endemic of the culture within the Fianna Fáil party, which has been in office too long,” he said.