Stanley apologises for offence caused by tweet

Sinn Féin Laois/Offaly TD Brian Stanley has apologised for any offence caused by a tweet he posted last weekend about the 1920 Kilmichael ambush and the 1970 Warrenpoint bombings.

Speaking at the Oireachtas Public Accounts Committee, which he chairs, Stanley said:

“I am very conscious as the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee that the controversy has placed you all in a difficult and totally unnecessary situation, particularly when this committee has such important work to carry out."

“What I was attempting to do was to highlight that, following the disastrous decision to partition the country almost 100 years ago in the wake of events such as Kilmichael, that we still had conflict that went on for a long time and a lot of suffering took place

"As we work to advance reconciliation on our island, we need to be able to talk about the past in a way that is honest to each other, to our beliefs, but also doesn't deepen division or cause hurt. As an Irish republican and someone in a position of political leadership, I have to be more aware of my responsibility, to ensure that I do not do anything that is disrespectful to others."

Last weekend he wrote to his 3,700 followers:

“Kilmicheal (sic) (1920) and Narrow Water (1979) the 2 IRA operations that taught the elective of (the) British army and the establishment the cost of occupying Ireland. Pity for everyone they were such slow learners.”

The Kilmichael ambush was an attack carried out by the old IRA during the War of Independence in which 17 members of the Royal Irish Constabulary Auxiliary Division were killed.

The Warrenpoint ambush took place during the Troubles and saw 18 British soldiers killed by the Provisional IRA near Warrenpoint in 1979.

Taoiseach Micheál Martin condemned the content of the tweet, saying that it "damages our ability to reach out and genuinely try and create trust in a shared endeavour in the future on this island. It doesn't help that at all".

Leader of Sinn Féin Mary Lou McDonald said the tweet was a one-off mistake which would not be repeated and so the party would allow him to continue as PAC chair, while Fine Gael TDs have called on Mr Stanley to make a statement in the Dáil on the matter.