Overview

• Catherine Connolly says the candidate fully disclosed her past, the Garda vetting process produced no outcome, and the worker used daily visitor passes rather than a full security pass.
• The former staffer is identified as Ursula Shannon, convicted by the Special Criminal Court in 2014 and given a six‑year sentence for unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition.
• Court reports say Shannon was intercepted in 2012 in a stolen van containing two handguns, a stun gun, ammunition and disguise items before a suspected planned robbery.
• Connolly says the woman worked in Leinster House for less than six months, left to continue a PhD, and had been recommended by TDs including Éamon Ó Cuív and Clare Daly.
• Taoiseach Micheál Martin called the decision a very serious lapse in judgment, Heather Humphreys questioned how access was granted without clearance, and Green leader Roderic O'Gorman voiced misgivings about the placement.