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Northern Ireland Speaker Faces Calls to Step Aside Over Past Handling of Allegations
Sinn Fein called on the Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly to stand aside pending review of his response to concerns raised about Jeffrey Donaldson five years ago. The Democratic Unionist Party is conducting an independent review after Donaldson's conviction on child sex offences.
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The party made the request at the start of assembly business on Tuesday.
Background on the Allegations A BBC Spotlight investigation reported that the Speaker and another senior party member were informed in 2021 of separate allegations from a woman who said she had been exploited by Donaldson. The concerns surfaced after Donaldson's conviction last week on 18 counts of sex abuse, including one count of rape, against two women when they were children.
The Speaker told assembly members on Monday that nothing of a criminal or safeguarding nature was raised at the time. He said the woman was offered support but did not wish to make a formal complaint, and he stated that police investigated the matter with no further action taken.
The Democratic Unionist Party is commissioning an independent review into issues raised since the conviction. The Speaker said he has nothing to answer for and that recusing himself is not necessary.
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