Justice Minister Naomi Long has called for Sinn Fein to reflect on its handling of the Michael McMonagle case and said the party still has questions to answer.
The former Sinn Fein press officer pleaded guilty last month to a string of sex charges, including attempting to incite a child into sexual activity.
He was first arrested by police in August 2021 and subsequently suspended from Sinn Fein.
It later emerged two Sinn Fein press officers, Seán Mag Uidhir and Caolán McGinley, provided McMonagle with employment references for a role with the British Heart Foundation – but did not disclose that he was under investigation.
Speaking at the launch of a new campaign to tackle paramilitary harm in north Belfast, Mrs Long said Sinn Fein should answer why they didn’t report to McMonagle’s new employer that he was under investigation.
“I think all of us when we are confronted with a situation (like this) need to be capable of self-reflection,” she said.
“We need to look at what we could do better in those circumstances where they’d reoccur, and we need to learn lessons of what went wrong.
“So I do think that there are questions that Sinn Fein should be asking themselves and questions that they have to answer – in terms of, for example, why they didn’t report to a new employer that the individual in question was under investigation.
“I think that’s a significant question that they need to reflect on, whether that was appropriate or not.”
Mrs Long also reassured those with concerns over the Access NI check process.
Access NI is a branch in the Department of Justice. Its role is to process applications from members of the public who require a criminal record check for employment purposes – typically for roles involving children.
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“In terms of safeguarding, obviously the lead for that is the Department of Health – but my role in that is through Access NI,” she added.
“It is clear that once somebody has been charged with offences, that will show up on an Access NI check, and so I would want to reassure those who are reliant on it, that that system works, and encourage people who are concerned to seek those checks when they’re employing people into the organisations.”
McMonagle (42), of Limewood Street in Londonderry, is due to be sentenced next month.
Earlier today, DUP leader Gavin Robinson also said Sinn Fein had questions to answer over its handling of the case, as they have “not given satisfactory answers”.
He said: “I think it is clear to see that from the outset they tried to shut the story down. I think over the last number of days you can see that there are new questions emerging and answers that really aren’t satisfying people.”
First Minister and Sinn Fein’s vice-president Michelle O’Neill later said she was “horrified” that McMonagle had been given references by the party’s press officers.
She also told reporters on Wednesday that she did not know McMonagle was at an event in 2023 at Parliament Buildings which was attended by the British Heart Foundation, in which she is pictured standing yards away from the sex offender.
Mrs Long attended the event at The Duncarin in north Belfast, marking the launch of a new advertising campaign to tackle paramilitaries in Northern Ireland.
“We must shine a light on what is not normal but has been normalised if we are to expose the true nature of paramilitary harm and ensure victims get support,” she said.
The new ‘Ending the Harm’ public awareness campaign shows how people are being exploited by paramilitary gangs in often ‘hidden’ harms.
The campaign has a particular focus on child criminal exploitation, grooming, violence extortion of local businesses and violence against women and girls.
“The hidden harms highlighted in this new campaign are examples of those which are perpetrated daily by paramilitary criminals,” Mrs Long added.
“They are compounded by drug trafficking, intimidation, coercive control of communities, money lending, physical and mental abuse, and undermining the law and criminal justice structures. The result is a complex web of control that extends deep into communities.
“It is important therefore that we challenge the true nature of paramilitary influence so it cannot hide in plain sight and it is no longer accepted as normal or inevitable. We want to empower our communities and encourage victims to come forward and get support.”