Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)

The laws relating to Mr. Molloy's deal are the Labour Services Act 1987, the Superannuation and Pensions Act 1963, the Department of Finance guidelines, the code of practice covering directors of public bodies and the tax Acts. Senior civil servants and Ministers had clear responsibilities in respect of the law. We deserve answers.

In the absence of answers I put these key questions to the Tánaiste again tonight. Why was no legal advice sought on the deal with Mr. Molloy when it was freely available from the Office of the Attorney General? Why was it indicated there was a threat of legal action, when later the Taoiseach denied this? Did Mr. Molloy resign or was he sacked? If he resigned, as is claimed, why was he given a generous severance package? What was the legal basis for the extra €1.2 million given to Mr. Molloy, when this was explicitly precluded under the Department of Finance's guidelines? Why did senior officials in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment not consult these guidelines? Given that all of this was impermissible under the law, why was Government approval not sought for this deal?

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