The Office of the Ceann Comhairle has issued an official statement rejecting claims that it is investigating Wexford TD and Minister for Housing James Browne over alleged breaches of Dáil rules.
Responding to recent media reports, the Ceann Comhairle clarified that no investigation is underway, nor does the office have the authority to launch such investigations.
Instead, it confirmed that a routine process is being followed to assess whether a parliamentary question was adequately answered — a procedure regularly used when a TD believes a minister’s reply is insufficient.
It comes as the Irish Times reported that Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy had ruled that Minister for Housing James Browne breached Dáil rules by refusing to release data on social and affordable housing schemes. They say the decision follows a complaint from Sinn Féin TD Eoin Ó Broin, who claimed the information was being withheld to hide delays in housing approvals. The Department of Housing had argued the data was commercially sensitive and too time-consuming to compile.
The Ceann Comhairle office has now confirmed to South East Radio news that no investigation is underway and a routine process is being followed. The process is guided by Standing Order 55, which allows a TD to formally express dissatisfaction with a response.
If the Ceann Comhairle agrees, the relevant minister is then asked to provide a more detailed answer. This mechanism, the statement emphasised, is procedural and does not amount to a formal investigation.
