Niall Ó Donnghaile is a former Belfast-based Sinn Féin senator. He previously served as lord mayor of Belfast from 2011 to 2012 and was a councillor on Belfast City Council from 2011 to 2016.
The Belfast native was also a former community worker. He was first elected to the Seanad in 2016 and was re-elected to the position again in 2020. Ó Donnghaile announced his surprise resignation from the Seanad in December last year, citing health reasons.
It has since emerged that Ó Donnghaile was the party member who stood down after allegedly sending inappropriate text messages to a teenager. In his statement last December, he said he had been unable to attend the Seanad due to advice from his doctor.
“It is unlikely that this situation will change in the short-term. Therefore I feel the best decision for myself, my family and the party going forward is to resign from the Seanad and step back from public life”.
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His resignation took effect immediately. Speaking at the time of his resignation, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said she hoped Ó Donnghaile could overcome his health challenges and wished him well for the future. She said he spent almost eight years “giving voice to northern nationalists in the Oireachtas”.
“Niall served diligently during that period, and indeed prior during his time as a member of Belfast City Council and as Ardmhéara Beál Feirste. In particular, Niall made a valuable contribution to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday agreement,” she said.
On his profile on the social media platform X, Ó Donnghaile said he is currently “taking things a bit easier”.
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