Roaring Richard O’Donoghue of Independent Ireland stood up in the Dáil chamber on Tuesday and accused the chairman of Bord Bia of insider trading.
Because he could.
Insider trading is a criminal offence in this country.
Richard was in no doubt about what he had just said. He had no problem saying it.
And as he was speaking on the floor of the national parliament, he was in no danger of being hauled before the courts and sued for defamation either.
In his view, Larry Murrin, who is the boss of international cooked meat suppliers Dawn Farm Foods when he isn’t chairing the State’s food promotion agency, is committing a crime.
“It’s actually cartelling,” he roared.
“No, it’s not,” retorted the Taoiseach.
“It is,” insisted the TD for Limerick County, conjuring up a novel scenario to bolster his case.
“Would you allow Fine Gael’s general secretary sit inside in your Fianna Fáil parliamentary meeting and listen to all the points that ye have, but yet ye allow Larry Murrin sit as chairperson where he’s got the full disclosure of all the Bord Bia, and suppliers to Bord Bia?
“That’s insider trading under Irish law,” he roared.
Richard didn’t choose the best example to justify his accusation. No party’s general secretary has to sit inside Fianna Fáil or, indeed, Fine Gael’s parliamentary party room to glean “all the points” because they are routinely fed in real time to ravenous political correspondents on eavesdropping duty.
In contrast to the thunderous question, Micheál Martin significantly lowered the decibel level with his reply.
“That’s a very serious assertion, which should be taken off the record.”
“It is,” countered roaring Richard before very simply addressing the Taoiseach’s advice about taking it off the Dáil record.
“No.”
Micheál wasn’t very happy about this.
He looked towards the chairwoman. “Like, that’s in breach of standing orders. It has to be.”
Where was the Ceann Comhairle when O’Donoghue was taking advantage of his constitutional right to absolute privilege when mouthing off in the Dáil? Did she reach a similar conclusion?
A subdued Verona Murphy issued a quiet mea culpa.
“I didn’t hear it. I apologise,” she confessed to a frustrated Taoiseach.
“Insider trading is a criminal act,” he murmured, putting his pen down on the desk. “You have to withdraw that.”
The Limerick TD had no intention of doing anything of the sort.
The Ceann Comhairle, by the sound of her voice, knew she wasn’t going to get any change out of him either, but she tried anyway.
She turned her attention to O’Donoghue. “Deputy, I’d ask you if you … will … if … you …”
“I’m won’t withdraw it. No.”
He was not for turning.
“Then there’s a problem,” said the Taoiseach.
This was getting serious.
But no, roaring Richard had no intention of withdrawing his accusation that the chairman of Bord Bia has been indulging in insider trading as he insisted: “It is so serious for the people here and for all the farming organisations”.
Murrin, who has not claimed fees or expenses since he was appointed to chair the State’s food promotion agency at the start of 2024, is under pressure from farmers to resign his position after his business confirmed that it sources some beef from Brazil, which accounted for 1 per cent of its beef last year.
He was in Leinster House last week, where he answered questions on the controversy at a fiery and often hostile meeting of the Agriculture committee. He wasn’t there yesterday to hear O’Donoghue accusing him of criminality, but even if he was, there was nothing he could do about it apart from challenging him to come outside and say the same thing to his face without the Dáil to protect him.
While TDs can speak freely without fear of any legal consequences, they can be disciplined by the Committee on Parliamentary Privilege and Oversight if they are found to have abused their privilege by making unfounded or defamatory remarks in the chamber.
The Ceann Comhairle wasn’t going to move matters any further during policy questions on Tuesday without the Independent Ireland man backing down, and he wasn’t going to that.
She said the issue “will have to be dealt with”, whereupon roaring Richard gratefully grasped the wrong end of the stick and declared that the Taoiseach “isn’t willing to deal with it”.
Verona meant the procedural argument, but he meant his question about allowing the chairman of Bord Bia to continue in his role when he is, according to O’Donoghue, in the sacred precincts of the Dáil chamber, involved in “insider trading”.
A three-way wrangle ensued between the Ceann Comhairle, Taoiseach and O’Donoghue, with Verona trying to shut down the argument and move on, Richard insisting that he was right in his assertion and Micheál battling to make a point of order about why he believed the rules of the House were breached.
“I don’t like doing this,” he said, about to take on the Ceann Comhairle over who knows what about the Dáil rule book.
At one point, Micheál (first elected in 1989) mentioned to Verona (first elected in 2020) “we have a history in this House”.
They had a fraught back and forth about the nature of the standing orders as roaring Richard offered howling accompaniment from across the floor.
“I think, sometimes on the floor, it’s either a clear breach of standing orders or it’s not,” said the Taoiseach. He kept saying he was trying to make a point of order while Verona kept pointing out that she can’t make a deputy withdraw a statement if they don’t want to do so.
“The deputy will have to deal with the consequences of it being on the record.”
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The Taoiseach was thoroughly frustrated, asking when will the Dáil get serious about “people’s names being taken and them being undermined” and their reputations being impugned?
The Ceann Comhairle, through the confusion, said Micheál could consult the Chief Whip, who was sitting behind him, about putting something into the standing orders.
“Who? It is in standing orders,” he cried.
Then roaring Richard made a telling intervention on his own behalf. “The Ceann Comhairle also said she didn’t hear it.”
Well, said she, “the Taoiseach heard it and he’s asking you to withdraw”.
Another TD piped up to say he heard it, too.
But Richard shot back that she also should have heard him as well.
Verona came clean: “I was having a conversation with the usher, which shouldn’t be the case either.”
Micheál came to the rescue. He said he just wanted to make the observation that this sort of carry-on has been happening in the chamber “for quite a long time” and it was fine with him if she referred the comments made by Deputy O’Donoghue to the oversight committee.
The Ceann Comhairle promised to do it if, as required, a complaint is lodged.
She’ll be doing it, so.