O’Neill confident she took ‘correct action’ over McMonagle

Michelle O’Neill has said she is confident she took the “correct action” when dealing with a former employee of Sinn Fein who was under investigation for sex offences.

Making her first public comments on the controversy, Northern Ireland’s First Minister also insisted she was not aware that Michael McMonagle was at a Stormont event which she attended in February 2023.

A former Sinn Fein press officer, McMonagle was first arrested in August 2021 on suspicion of sex offences.

The party has said it suspended him as soon as it became aware of the police investigation.

Last month, McMonagle, 42, from Limewood Street, Londonderry, admitted a series of offences, including attempting to incite a child to engage in sexual activity.

Two other Sinn Fein press officers, Sean Mag Uidhir and Caolan McGinley, resigned on Saturday, days after it emerged that they had given references for McMonagle for a job at a charity.

He took up a position with the British Heart Foundation in September 2022.

The charity has said it was not made aware that he was facing investigation.

DUP MLA Brian Kingston asked Ms O’Neill about the issue during a hearing of the Executive Office Committee.

He said: “I am sure you would agree that concerns about an alleged abuser shouldn’t just disappear because they have moved to another parish.

“I feel it is relevant to ask the First Minister, you were present at the event in this building on February 14 2023 which was also attended by the British Heart Foundation which was focused on the medical needs of a child.

“Were you aware at that time that Michael McMonagle was also present?

“Did you not feel it would have been appropriate for you or someone else in Sinn Fein to have informed the British Heart Foundation that Mr McMonagle had been suspended from his employment with your party due to serious allegations prior to taking up his post with BHF?”

Ms O’Neill said: “I am absolutely aghast and horrified that two former employees decided to give a reference to this individual.

“It would not have happened had they have come and asked for permission, they would not have been given permission.

“It was wrong, absolutely wrong, and should not have happened.”

She added: “This is not behaviour that’s acceptable to me, and that was why, as soon as I became aware of it, we took immediate action, and the two people are no longer employed by Sinn Fein.”

The First Minister continued: “I did not know anything about Michael McMonagle’s whereabouts or employment.

“I attended an event here in this building, like many of you would have attended the event, because of the support for the campaign, and I engaged with the family on that day, and not with anybody who may have been with the British Heart Foundation.”

Mr Kingston responded, saying: “Given that members of Sinn Fein were aware of the allegations about Michael McMonagle, which he has since confessed to, does the First Minister stand over the comments made by the Economy Minister (Conor Murphy) yesterday in relation to this issue that there was no moral or public responsibility on Sinn Fein to have acted differently?”

Ms O’Neill said: “What Michael McMonagle has done is wrong, he’s now admitted that, and he should be dealt with for the full force of the law, let’s make that point very clear.

“Aligned to that, I’m very confident that I took all the correct action in terms of what I need to do, in terms of disciplinary action within my own party.

“He left our employment, and rightly so.

“In terms of your question about the British Heart Foundation, I’m very confident that whenever we were aware of what we knew in terms of the fact it was a criminal investigation under way, that then became an issue for the police and justice system to deal with, and I was confident that that was the case.”

Ms O’Neill added: “So there are, I think, lessons to be learned for a lot of people here, in terms of due diligence of an employer who takes on an employee and I think everybody needs to learn those lessons.

“But in terms of my actions, in terms of the employment of these individuals and these references that were given, they would not have been okayed on my part.

“I never would have okayed those references. And had I been asked, I would have said so. And that is why the two people are no longer employed.”