Pa Daly

Mr Daly, a solicitor who served as his party’s justice spokesperson from 2020 until yesterday, is taking the High Court action against the Taoiseach, the government, Ireland and the attorney general.

He is seeking a declaration that the appointment by the Taoiseach of junior ministers with the right to attend Cabinet meetings is unconstitutional.

Mr Daly is being represented by Feichín McDonagh SC, Brendan Hennessy BL and John Biggins BL, instructed by solicitor John Rogers.

In a statement yesterday, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the legal action “follows last week’s decision by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to appoint a record number of ‘super juniors’ as part of their grubby deal with Michael Lowry’s Regional Group”.

“It is apparent that government is using the role of ‘super junior ministers’ as a work around the Constitution, which is very clear that government can consist of a maximum of 15 members,” she said.

“Government manoeuvres allow individuals to sit at the cabinet table and be treated as though they are government ministers enjoying all of the rights of a minister, save the ability to cast a vote. We believe that this is in contravention of the Constitution.

“The government motivation is not about delivering for people. It’s not about making government work better. It is about greasing the wheels of power. It smacks of arrogance and entitlement by those who believe that the rules don’t apply to them.

“We believe that it is now time for the courts to rule on this matter.”