The ceann comhairle has been accused of overstepping the remit of his office by passing representations on behalf of the Chinese government to colleagues.
Documents obtained under freedom of information law by The Sunday Times show Seán Ó Fearghaíl has contacted the Department of Foreign Affairs, Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and various TDs about Ireland’s position on Taiwan after several meetings with Chinese diplomats since 2017.
In a letter sent to Dr Yue Xiaoyong, the Chinese ambassador to Ireland, in October 2018, Ó Fearghaíl said he had taken a number of measures to address the diplomat’s “valid concerns” about the attendance of TDs at a function organised by the Taiwan cultural office, held at the Westbury hotel in Dublin.
The ceann comhairle said that he