The Tánaiste, Ms Harney, has said that once she had established that Mr Bobby Molloy was not personally acquainted with the Naughton family and that he had spoken neither to the Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, nor the judge, she felt the correct thing to do was to allow him time to reflect on his position, rather than demand his resignation.
Speaking in Cork yesterday, Ms Harney said Mr Molloy had been an outstanding politician for 37 years, and more recently, an outstanding member of the Progressive Democrats. Having made a mistake which he deeply regretted, she was not going to push him over the cliff "and dump him", she added.
In the past, the PDs had been accused of always "looking for heads". In this instance, she went on, it had been established quickly that Mr Molloy had made unwise representations on behalf of a constituent, but he did not know the family on a personal level, he had not tried to speak to the judge in an attempt to influence the case and he had not made contact directly with the Minister for Justice. While it might have been foolish of him to pursue the representations, given the issues involved, Mr Molloy, who had been in politics for longer than she had, deserved time to consult with his family, and in the end, had taken the decision himself to resign.
Ms Harney said Mr O'Donoghue had behaved "impeccably and honourably", answered all the questions, and the question of his resignation did not arise. "The next thing is the Opposition will be calling for myself and the Taoiseach to resign," she added.
She said it was clear the query made on Mr Molloy's behalf should have gone to officials of the court rather than the judge. Public anger at what had happened was understandable. Mr Molloy should have told his constituent that he could do nothing for her, Ms Harney said. While Bobby Molloy had "paid a huge price," the Progressive Democrats would bounce back, she added.