The Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has questioned the Taoiseach’s and the Government’s decision in the regards of the expulsion of the Russian Ambassador to Ireland from Ireland.
Ms Mcdonald who was speaking during a debate in the Dáil, has said the expulsion of Yury Filatov has put Ireland’s neutrality position in to question.
In an exchange that seen comments from both the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Ms Mcdonald, the Sinn Féin leader said she was skeptical about the move as the decision was solely based on information obtained from a foreign security service.
Although Mr Varadkar claimed that the decision was the wisest course of action following assessments by the Irish security services, Ms Mcdonald still stated that she held reservations about the move as she feels it puts Ireland’s long standing neutrality at risk.
Ms Mcdonald who accused the Taoiseach of trying to dismantle Ireland’s neutrality, also claimed that trusting Boris Johnson was not exactly the wisest course of action to take when it came deciding Mr Filatov’s future in Ireland.
However the Taoiseach responded by saying that although the decision to expel Mr Filatov was an act of solidarity with the UK, he did reiterate that it wasn’t the sole factor as information from trusted Irish security services was crucial.