'Goes to the heart of democracy': Catherine Murphy welcomes Supreme Court ruling on Denis O'Brien appeal
Social Democrats co-leader Catherine Murphy has welcomed a Supreme Court decision that unanimously dismissed Denis O’Brien’s appeal over statements made by her and by Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty in the Dáil about Mr O'Brien's banking affairs.
Deputy Murphy told RTE Radio’s News at One that parliamentary privilege had to be used very carefully and that today's decision went to the heart of democracy.
There would have been major repercussions for the functioning of democracy if the decision had not gone this way, she said.
Any interference by the courts in how an Oireachtas committee had dealt with Mr O’Brien’s complaint over the TDs’ actions is impermissible under the Constitution, the seven-judge court ruled.
That was so because it would amount to an “indirect and collateral” interference by the courts with statements made in the Oireachtas which are protected by Article 15, which confers privilege on parliamentary speech, it said.
“I think this is a really important decision, so it's a decision way beyond what I feel is about how citizens are represented in the Dáil. I think it goes to the heart of democracy," said Deputy Murphy.
“It is a very welcome decision. This wasn't an issue I raised first in May of 2015 when this issue arose, I had been raising the issue from 2014, I put down 19 parliamentary questions that went unanswered, so this wasn't out of the blue, the debate that happened that day.
“I was introducing legislation in relation about what kind of an inquiry would happen, I was looking for legislation giving extra powers to the Comptroller and Auditor General because it had been proposed that KPMG would do a review.
I felt that was inappropriate because they had been themselves involved in some of the transactions that were of concern and that was why I was producing this piece of legislation and debating this piece of legislation that really was the subject of the complaint to the CPP.
“When people seek an injunction they do so to keep information out of the public domain. I wouldn't have been privy to what was going on in the courts … what was really important was we were dealing with an issue where we trying to put together an inquiry and what was going to be the best inquiry and that is exactly what I was trying to do in the legislation that I had produced and we were debating that day.
“This is a privilege and you've got to use it very carefully and at all points I acted in the public interest and I'm very confident that I can say that today just as I said it the day that this arose as an issue.
“People come to you with confidential information that is in the public interest, it is up to a deputy then to decide if that is in the public interest and if the use of parliamentary privilege is an appropriate use. You've got to use your judgement on that and people trust you to use your judgement, it's part of the reason why people elect deputies, it's based on components of why people will elect particular people - is that they trust you.
“At all points I was confident that I was acting in the public interest...I think it's going to be an important judgement not just for today, but I think this is an important judgement for the future as well.”
When asked about the ongoing issue of the SiteServ Inquiry said she was concerned about the length of time and cost of inquiries in general – “there are better ways of doing things. That's what I was trying to do in the context of this legislation.”
She said there will always be a need for “inquiries into things”, and it was important that they are conducted in a speedy and cost-effective way “that is the issue”.
Earlier, Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty said he was "over the moon" with the decision, adding "Common sense prevails."
