Ministers defend John Delaney’s reported campaigning

Two Government ministers have defended the reported involvement in political campaigning by Football Association of Ireland (FAI) chief executive John Delaney.

The Sunday Times reported Mr Delaney had visited local soccer clubs and a barber shop with Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly in his Tipperary constituency and urged people to vote for him.

Independent TD Mattie McGrath said Mr Delaney’s canvassing for Mr Kelly was “highly unusual and inappropriate’’.

Speaking in Dublin on Sunday, Tánaiste and Labour Party leader Joan Burton said if Mr Delaney was advising people to vote for Mr Kelly she supported that.

She said politics was full of people from various sporting bodies who had particular political allegiances, or who expressed a particular political viewpoint about how somebody was doing, without it necessarily being party political at all.

“I’ll say, really, that is a matter for John Delaney,’’ she added.

Speaking on Newstalk, Minister for Sport Paschal Donohoe said what people did in their personal time was their own business.

“I would be certain John, or anybody else involved in a public body, would not be using their public offices to advance any candidate,’’ he added.

An FAI spokesman said Mr Delaney had no comment to make on the matter.