Sinn Féin to nominate Mairead Farrell as PAC chairwoman

By Cillian Sherlock, PA

Sinn Féin is to nominate Mairead Farrell to be the new chairwoman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

It comes after PAC chairman Brian Stanley resigned from the party amid a controversy relating to a complaint made against him.

Speaking about the nomination, party leader Mary Lou McDonald said Ms Farrell “brings a considerable wealth of knowledge on budgetary matters”.

She added: “She has previously served as party spokesperson on public expenditure and subsequently as party spokesperson for further and higher education.

“She has a Masters in finance and a degree in economics, and worked in finance, all of which will further assist her in fulfilling the role.”

The chairs of committees are normally appointed through a system which is designed to proportionately reflect each party’s representation in the Dail chamber.

The move to formally change the committee chair should go before the Dail for approval next week.

However, the first scheduled sitting of PAC following Mr Stanley’s resignation is on Thursday morning.

Representatives from Government and opposition parties have suggested they would not co-operate with a new Sinn Féin chair until the party provided full transparency on recent scandals.

Members of the Social Democrats have said that current vice-chair Catherine Murphy could lead meetings during the time of uncertainty for the committee.