Fine Gael has demoted Maria Bailey following the Swing-gate controversy.
The party has opted to remove Deputy Bailey as Chairperson of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing.
The Taoiseach this evening announced the move following an internal inquiry into a personal injuries claim the deputy was taking against a Dublin hotel.
Leo Varadkar says “It is clear to me, that Deputy Bailey made numerous errors of judgement in her handling of this matter from the outset, during and even after she’d withdrawn the case.
And her approach jars with that of a Government taking action to reduce personal injury payments, claims and insurance costs to people and businesses."
The Taoiseach hopes the decision to demote Maria Bailey "will send a clear message to other public representatives about taking such cases in future."
Deputy Bailey has responded to her demotion:
“I initiated legal proceedings following an incident in 2015 in which I suffered painful injuries. I acted on legal advice throughout the process, but ultimately decided to withdraw the proceedings in an attempt to end the extraordinary media and political pressure that arose from the publication of some details of the case. I began the process leading to the taking of this case before I was a TD, in relation to an incident that took place over four years ago. I regret very much that I took the case.
