Update 12.14pm: Sports Minister Shane Ross has warned against a rush to judgment in the Rio ticket scandal.
Sports Minister Shane Ross said that it is too early to jump to conclusions about what happened.
“I think it would be absolutely wrong at this stage to rush to judgement in the face of at least four or five inquiries going on,” he said.
“It would be absolutely right to commit ourselves to finding out the truth, and that’s what we’re doing, and we’re doing it in a very aggressive and, I think, very energetic fashion.”
Earlier:
The Olympic Council of Ireland has been warned that the country’s image has been damaged by the Rio ticketing scandal.
Irishman Kevin Mallon, who was arrested in Brazil last week, has been accused of trying to re-sell hundreds of tickets earmarked for team Ireland.
Last night the OCI president Pat Hickey broke his silence saying there was “no impropriety whatsoever” in relation to the sale of tickets.
However, the comments have not stopped calls for the Government here to launch an official investigation into the matter.
Minister for Sport Shane Ross said that Mr Hickey may be in a “Rio bubble” about the seriousness of the issue.
“I think they probably lacked a sense of urgency,” he said.
“They may be living in a bit of a Rio bubble, and not realised the concerns that there was at home.
“But I think that if they were slow to start with, which they may have been, we’ve put a sense of urgency into them, which will accelerate the process now.”
Fianna Fáil TD Timmy Dooley said that the lack of an official investigation give the wrong impression.
“The Minister with responsibility here has been tardy in his response,” he said.
“It leaves open the perception that somehow this kind of practice is acceptable here.
“I don’t think that an Oireachtas Committee is the way to go, I think a scoping exercise within the Department, a senior official, and if warranted, if there’s some prima facie case established for a more detailed investigation, that it be carried out by a retired judge or a senior counsel.”
