Varadkar: 'False' allegations 'made by sworn political opponents'

The National Association of General Practitioners (NAGP) was at the time headed by Dr Maithiu O Tuathail, someone Mr Varadkar says was a friend, but not a close friend.

The DPP's decision clears the way for Mr Varadkar to become Taoiseach once more in December.

Statement

In a longer statement issued today, the Tánaiste says that the passing of the document was "no more than error" and was not illegal.

He said that the DPP decision followed "a thorough and meticulous investigation carried out by An Garda Síochána involving dozens of interviews and the examination of multiple documents and devices".

"My disclosure of the document to the President of the NAGP was lawful and I did so in the public interest. I was determined to secure that organisation’s support for the agreement we had reached with another organisation on behalf of General Practitioners.

"I accept that my use of an informal personal channel was inappropriate. It was my error and I bear sole responsibility for it. I have been held to account for those actions in the Dáil. I have apologised for it and I want to do so again.

"However, the allegations made against me, that it was anything more than error, were false. They were made by sworn political opponents of me and my party.

I know that I did not break any law, do anything corrupt or even self-interested. That is now clear to any fair-minded person.

The Tánaiste's statement adds that "those who made these allegations went to extraordinary lengths to publicise them".

"Their actions were politically motivated and often highly personalised at times. The tactics and motives of those persons ought to be the subject of some reflection. It is now a matter of public record that at least one of those persons was subject to investigation in respect of their own conduct in this affair."

The statement goes on to "clarify" points, namely:

• The document was as it was entitled – ‘An agreement on service delivery and contractual reform.’ It was not a contract. The use of the term ‘contract’ was deliberately used to create the impression that I had interfered in some sort of competition or tender process, or conferred an advantage on somebody in doing so. This was emphatically not the case."
• The document was not classified and did not go to Cabinet. Therefore, I could not have breached Cabinet confidentiality which some have claimed. While the document was marked confidential on the day it was generated, by the time I disclosed it almost two weeks later, the contents were largely in the public domain.
• The document was not a pay deal. The State cannot enter into pay deals with self-employed contractors. There was a revised fee schedule issued by the Minister following consultations. That was released and made public long before I disclosed the document.
• It has been suggested that I was investigated for a data protection offence. This was never the case. No personal data was involved.
• It was suggested that a complaint was made against me by a health official. This was not the case nor did anyone ever come forward to say they were a victim of a crime."

He reiterates his thanks to the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, and his party.

Due process

"I am very aware that many people and politicians are not allowed due process, the benefit of the doubt or the presumption of innocence. I am very grateful that — because of them — I was. It is something I will reflect on further.

"I also want to thank my legal advisers. I have a greater understanding now of the importance of legal representation and advice.

"I look forward to continuing my work as Tánaiste, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment, TD for Dublin West and Leader of Fine Gael. These are responsibilities that I relish and there is so much more I want to do."