DUP leader Gavin Robinson said Sinn Féin’s explanations 'have not withstood scrutiny'
There has been a call for transparency from Sinn Féin after a claim the party knew references had been given for Michael McMonagle last year.
However on Saturday, BHF said it told a senior Sinn Féin official about the references for McMonagle in August 2023. Sinn Féin vice president Michelle O’Neill and the head of the BHF in Northern Ireland, Fearghal McKinney, spoke earlier on Saturday about the fallout from the case. “Sinn Féin explanations have not withstood scrutiny. With every new revelation undermining a previous Sinn Féin position, this issue requires deeper scrutiny.”Sinn Féin has said it suspended him as soon as it became aware of the police investigation, and his employment was terminated in June 2022 when his contract ended.On Saturday, the BHF said it is confident it undertook all necessary statutory and moral duties required throughout the entire process.
“Michael McMonagle’s actions are utterly reprehensible and he is being held fully accountable under the law. His crimes have inflicted significant harm on his innocent victims. There is nothing more reprehensible than the abuse of a child,” she said.She was pictured at an event which McMonagle had attended in Parliament Buildings in February 2023.
“As a political leader and a mother, I want to be clear that the issue of child safeguarding is of paramount importance to me. The Sinn Féin leadership and I will ensure that a situation like this will never arise again." "I wish to reiterate that the BHF is confident we undertook all necessary statutory and moral duties required throughout this entire process. Our staff and volunteers in Northern Ireland have been devastated by this issue and our focus now must be on supporting them and focusing on what we are here to do – funding lifesaving research to find the cures and treatments for heart and circulatory disease.
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