Tribunal of Inquiry into certain matters relating to the Complaints Processes in the Defence Forces: Motion
Dail Éireann — 2024-01-24
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Micheál Martin (FF), Cork South-Central

I thank all the Deputies for their contributions to the debate. There are a number of points to which I want to respond. Deputy Nolan made a point about me supposedly equating sexual assault with trips and falls. It was very unworthy of her to say that. I have rejected that in public. It was an outrageous distortion, to be frank, and I said that. It is not something I would ever do; in fact, it was the opposite. This inquiry has to examine how allegations of sexual abuse and sexual assault were dealt with by the complaints system. Any notion that I would make such an equation is untrue. I have said this already and made my point clear on it. If we are having a debate, people need to be clear about what is the truth. I take exception to that remark and have done so since it was first articulated. I have rejected it very strongly. The opposite is what I am about.
On the "lastminute.com" comment, the terms of reference were first circulated last May and there have been a series of iterations of the terms of reference since last May up to the end of December.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2024-01-24/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:52:35+00:00
Sitting date: 2024-01-24