Dublin TD Sinead Gibney confirmed this morning that she is no longer the party’s spokesperson on Foreign Affairs
The TD has been replaced by Senator Patricia Stephenson.
Ms Gibney confirmed this morning that she is no longer the party’s spokesperson on Foreign Affairs, but she said she is not leaving the party.
She was appointed the party spokesperson for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation; Enterprise, Tourism and Employment; Foreign Affairs and Trade; and Defence after the general election.
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However, she is now no longer the spokesperson for the brief.
Party sources said TDs were reshuffled spokesperson positions as they were assigned committee roles in recent days.
Asked at Leinster House earlier today if it was true she was no longer Foreign Affairs spokesperson, Ms Gibney confirmed: “Yes, and there will be a statement from the party.”
Ms Gibney later said she was “thrilled” to have gotten the chance to be the foreign affairs spokesperson for the party.
“I’m delighted to hand it over to [Senator Patricia Stephenson],” she said in a video posted on social media.
“I know that Gaza in particular is a hugely important topic for everybody right now, so it is important to say this is not going to stop me or any other member of the parliamentary party continuing to work on Gaza and hold this Government to account on its inaction.”
Social Democrats stand-in leader Cian O’Callaghan said today: “I’m not aware that she’s cheesed off, or anything.”
He said Ms Gibney would have three other roles as spokesperson for the party, on Enterprise, Trade and Employment; Arts, Media, Communications and Culture; and on Defence.
Asked if there was any reason she had been reshuffled out of Foreign Affairs, he said: “No. She has been excellent in the role.”
“We are readjusting our senior roles,” Mr O’Callaghan said.
Senator Patricia Stephenson was taking over the role and joining the Dáil Foreign Affairs committee “because of her background in peace-building”.
Gibney has been vocal on Gaza and last week would not rule out resigning from the party if Eoin Hayes was readmitted.
Mr Hayes was suspended from the party pending an internal review, after it emerged he sold his shares in a US software company that supplies technology to the Israeli military following his election as a councillor last year.
An internal review in February, which examined both the suspension of Mr Hayes and the party’s candidate selection process, decided to uphold the indefinite suspension of the Dublin Bay South TD.
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