Adams again denies being a member of the IRA despite just 4% of poll believing him

Gerry Adams

Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams has again denied ever being a member of the IRA – despite being presented with an opinion poll earlier this week which showed that just 4% of voters believed him.

The Louth TD said the 89pc of people surveyed by RTÉ show ‘Claire Byrne Live’, who believe he was a member of the IRA, are “absolutely” wrong.

The survey took the opinions of 1,000 people, and just 7pc said they didn’t know if they believed Mr Adams.

Mr Adams said he thought it was a “settled matter” and that his denial had been his “consistent position”.

“I stood for an election in Louth, they’re the people who voted and trust me.

“The people in the next election will have the opportunity to sack me if they so wish, so let’s not get distracted,” he said.

When probed by Claire Byrne as to what response he has to people who don’t believe him when he denies he was a member of the IRA, the Sinn Féin TD said he doesn’t “say anything to them”.

The survey also asked people whether it mattered to them if Mr Adams was a member of the IRA. Some 47pc of respondents said that it did matter, while 45pc said it didn’t.

Mr Adams added: “I say vote for Sinn Féin in the next election. I say to them vote for Sinn Féin to continue our work in the peace process.”

Former Dunnes employee dismissed after strike to appear on RTÉ tonight

Tony Malone

The local Dunnes Stores employee who claims he was unfairly dismissed from his job in the Marshes Shopping Centre just a day after going on strike earlier this month will be interviewed on RTÉ television tonight.

Tony Malone, from Muirhevnamor, will appear on Claire Byrne Live on RTÉ One at 9.35pm.

Last week the Mandate Trade Union said they were taking legal advice over Dunnes’ decision to let Mr Malone go from his employment just 24 hours after the strike on Holy Thursday, April 2^nd.

While the case is still under investigation, a number of locals have vowed to boycott Dunnes over the treatment of Mr Malone, with staff nationally considering proposals to strike again, most likely on the May Bank Holiday weekend.

Mr Malone told the ‘This Week’ programme on RTÉ radio at the weekend that he would choose to go on strike again if he was still working at the company.

Asked if his dismissal could scare other workers from further industrial action, Mr Malone said: “It may scare the ones that never striked, but for the ones who did strike, I think it will just add some fuel to the fire.”