Something more swept under the Executive carpet
21 December 2012
With Sinn Fein’s heavy defeat in Declan Gormley’s libel action still reverberating, TUV Leader Jim Allister has challenged the Executive about the leaking of privileged legal advice following the Industrial Tribunal finding in favour of Alan Lennon over his non-appointment by Conor Murphy.
Mr Murphy has purported in the public media to quote from legal advice he claims DRD received following the Lennon decision. Such advice would be totally privileged and ought not to be in the possession of a non member of the Executive, such as Conor Murphy.
Mr Allister has already established through an Assembly Question that DRD “did not provide the former Minister Conor Murphy with any legal advice arising from the finding in the Fair Employment Tribunal”. Now, the TUV Leader intends to press OFMDFM to fully investigate how and by whom legal advice was leaked.
Commenting Jim Allister said, “The leaking of legal advice is a serious matter, which, I believe, would patently breach the ministerial code, if a minister is responsible, and breach the obligations of a civil servant, including the Official Secrets Act, if leaked by a member of departmental staff, or Special Adviser.
“I am disappointed that to date there is no sign of the Stormont Executive taking any action on this serious issue and, therefore, I am challenging OFMDFM to come clean on what they’ve done about this matter, particularly since I understand the advice was circulated to all Executive ministers and was not solely in the possession of DRD.
“In any accountable government such flagrant breach of governmental obligations would result in a sacking, but at Stormont, it seems, it is just something more to sweep under the carpet.”
