Bruton criticises Sinn Féin response to sex abuse allegations

Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton has described Sinn Féin's handling of alleged sex abuse by IRA members as inadequate.

Speaking in Paris, where he is representing the Irish Government for four days of St Patrick's Day activities, Mr Bruton criticised Sinn Féin's response to allegations made in the BBC Spotlight programmes by Maíria Cahill and Paudie McGahon.

They claim they were raped by IRA members and that their allegations were investigated by IRA kangaroo courts.

“Unfortunately it’s an organisation that has spent a lot of its life using words to avoid taking responsibility, and I think that continues to be a feature,” he said.

“The worry I would have is that by their inactivity they exposed someone else to risk.

“That’s the worst feature of this, that by failing to report and to take appropriate action, that someone else who’s entirely innocent gets exposed to risk.

“There are responsibilities that go with being a democratic political party which they have to embed in their thinking. Perhaps that hasn’t been done to the level it needs to be done.”

Mr Bruton said “the expectation” was that Sinn Féin would turn over all information gleaned from internal investigations of alleged sex abuse by IRA members.