Longford-Westmeath Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy is defending his performance as the opposition’s spokesperson on children following criticism by a colleague on the Oireachtas Committee for Children.
Meath East Fine Gael TD Regina Doherty was unimpressed that he had missed two key events in the last week, following his recent appointment to his new role by his party leader Micheál Martin.
He failed to attend his first meeting at the Oireachtas Committee for Health and Children, and didn’t attend the launch of new child protection standards on Wednesday.
“I find it hard to believe that Deputy Troy thinks it is appropriate to criticise the Minister for Children, when he can’t even be bothered to attend his first Oireachtas Health Committee since he took up Fianna Fáil’s children’s portfolio, or be present at the launch of new standards that will completely change the way children’s services are delivered in this country,” she said.
“If Deputy Troy wants to contribute to this change agenda, he would be better using his time to attend the Health Committee and engage with his fellow legislators, rather than issuing press releases that reflect just the kind of Punch and Judy politics his Party leader claims to abhor,” her press statement concluded.
However, Deputy Troy accused Doherty of playing the man, not the issue and speaking to Midlands 103 news, offered reasons for his perceived failings.
He said he hadn’t been invited to the launch of the Hiqa Child Protection Standards.
“I presume that was just an omission by the HSE as I’ve only recently been appointed,” he said.
Regarding his failure to attend the all-party committee meeting, he said he had been made aware of it at the end of last week by the committee chairman, but didn’t realize he was supposed to attend.
“I understood that I was taking up my position on the Health Committee from September, when we go back after the summer recess,” he said.
