A meeting of Donegal County Council has been abandoned this morning due to confrontations in the chamber.
All councillors were ordered to go home one hour into the meeting at the Aura Leisure Centre.
Proceedings will move online after 1.30pm.
The dispute was sparked by motions on the Mica crisis.
Cllr Frank McBrearty was asked to leave the meeting for “disruptive” behaviour. A recess was called, but the in-person meeting was eventually halted by Cathaoirleach Jack Murray when Cllr McBrearty refused to withdraw himself from the chamber.
Discussions had been taking place on Mica defective materials, the purchase of materials from quarries that are known to have defective materials, and the purchase of 5 Mica-affected houses in Buncrana.
Cllr McBrearty had made a call for a complete file relating to the testing of five houses purchases by the council at An Crannla in Buncrana. The file is subject to an FOI request, Cllr McBrearty said, but he believes he is entitled to the document in the public interest.
Cllr McBrearty was told that his FOI request will be fulfilled ‘imminently’.
Discussions became further heated on the topic of the council’s business with quarries that are known to have defective materials.
Cathaoirleach Jack Murray told members that he was closing proceedings until Cllr McBrearty left the meeting.
“We need to conduct the meeting in a proper democratic fashion, we cannot allow one person to dominate the meeting,” said Cllr Michael McMahon ahead of the recess.
Following a 10 minute recess, a motion was moved to withdraw Cllr McBrearty.
Cllr McBrearty claimed that he was being prevented from asking for information.
Cllr Murray told Cllr McBrearty: “Since July we’ve had four motions on Mica that can’t be discussed because you keep disrupting the meeting.”
Cllr Gerry McMonagle added: “There is only one person stopping the truth coming out here, and that’s Cllr McBrearty, because he won’t allow our meetings to be completed. He needs to sit down and listen to the members and the executive. The people representing those affected by Mica are Paddy Diver, Eileen Doherty, Michael Doherty and Ann Owens. They are doing a fantastic job. This man here (Cllr McBrearty), one of our members, is preventing us from getting to the truth and giving our full support.”
