The Mire understands that Defence Minister Willie O’Dea may claim he was in the Dail chamber when he gave a sworn statement which he later accepted was not true.
Mr O’Dea denied in an affidavit that he told a journalist that a Limerick Sinn Féin candidate Maurice Quinlivan owned a property where two prostitutes had been recently arrested. He later admitted he had made a false statement in the affidavit.
In the Seanad, Senator Eugene Regan has twice accused Mr O’Dea of “lying on oath”. However, supporters of Mr O’Dea argue that if he gave the affidavit in the Dail “the normal rules do not apply”.
“There is a long and noble tradition of making false statements in the Dail,” a source said. “As a TD for over 20 years the Minister may not even know when he is telling the truth.”
