Heneghan criticises “toxic” behaviour in Dáil, says he won’t be “bullied”

Dublin Bay North TD Barry Heneghan has informed Taoiseach Micheál Martin that he is looking to move his Dáil seat away from fellow independent TD Michael Lowry.

Heneghan and Lowry are part of the Regional Independent Group of TDs who are backing up the government but the move has come under increasing scrutiny in recent weeks.

Last week’s scenes in the Dáil, where Lowry was shown holding two fingers up to the camera of People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy, has seen the independent-backed government come under serious pressure.

Heneghan has informed the Taoiseach he wants to move his seat in the Dáil chamber.

In the same letter, he cited “toxic and undermining behaviour” from unnamed TDs.

“If I wanted to align myself with a political party or the behaviour of other politicians, I would have joined one – I didn’t. What I didn’t anticipate, perhaps due to youth or inexperience, is the level of toxic and undermining behaviour I would face, both within and outside the chamber. I will not continue to tolerate it,” he wrote in a letter to the Taoiseach.

The Dublin Bay North TD has said he will continue to support the government, stating, “I will not be bullied or intimidated out of that position.”

“I chose to take a position, to support the formation of a government, and to try to deliver real results for my constituents in Dublin Bay North. That hasn’t changed.”

In an interview with Virgin Media in January, Heneghan said “the whole issue with Michael Lowry happened two years before I was born and there’s been a lot of waste of taxpayers money going into it; at this stage now, do you not think we should not just keep on and think about what I care about, which is disability, mental health, Beaumont Hospital’s new A&E.”

Heneghan asserted that Lowry was “very fierce” in negotiations and that the people of Dublin Bay North “will be very happy if we can deliver on the key targets that I ran on.”