Cowen to review use of diplomatic postbag
Minister for Foreign Affairs Brian Cowen said today he would be ordering a review of the use of the diplomatic postbag to circulate party political material.
Fianna Fáil has come under fire from opposition parties since it emerged diplomatic staff abroad were sent campaign messages along with their voting forms.
Mr Cowen insisted there was nothing wrong with using the diplomatic bag to lobby for votes, but said he would order a review in the interests of clarity.
“Enquiries were made by Fianna Fáil… there was no objection and it was sent on that basis,” he said.
“It’s open for any other party to do the same if they made the same enquiry. But for the future, to avoid any misunderstanding, I’m asking the Department to take a review and issue some guidelines on this whole area.”
A memorandum was sent to all foreign diplomats along with their ballot papers, urging them to vote Fianna Fáil in the local and European elections and to vote ‘yes’ in the referendum.
Labour party leader Pat Rabbitte described the move as a “serious misuse of power” while Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny demanded an explanation.
“Once again we see the Taoiseach and his Fianna Fáil colleagues using public facilities for party political gain,” said Deputy Kenny.
“Attaching this memorandum to official European and local election material is an abuse of official facilities. The Taoiseach and the Minister for Foreign Affairs have serious questions to answer.”
