Friday 20 June 2014 15.57 Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin has said that Niall Collins' position as the party's justice spokesperson will not change despite controversy over a letter he wrote asking for a man convicted of drugs offences not to be sent to prison.
Speaking in Cork, Mr Martin said Mr Collins has acknowledged that what he did was wrong and accepted that it would never happen again.
He said he is happy as Fianna Fáil leader for Mr Collins to remain as the party's Justice Spokesperson.
He said Mr Collins is a young politician who has worked very hard on the justice portfolio, and he is happy that he will remain in that position.
Mr Martin said over the years politicians from many parties have wrongly intervened in court matters and it was now time for the introduction of a cross-party code of ethics which would clearly state that it is wrong for any politician to ever intervene in judicial matters.
Mr Collins earlier rejected suggestions that he should step down from his role as party justice spokesperson.
Speaking on RTÉ's Today with Sean O'Rourke, Mr Collins said his intervention in the court case was a mistake and that he would not do it again.
However, he said the intent of his action was purely compassionate.
He said he was aware of the tragic circumstances of the family at the centre of the case, and was asked to present those facts to the court by way of a written submission.
There was no political gain for him in doing this, he said.
Responding to questions about whether or not he should remain as party justice spokesperson, Mr Collins said he thought he should.
He said he had always sought to be fair, reasonable and constructive and that he approached the job with the right intentions.
Mr Collins said he explained the circumstances to Mr Martin yesterday.
He said the Fianna Fáil leader asked him not to engage in this type of action again.
Meanwhile, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton has said every politician should understand the fundamental independence of the judiciary from the political system.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Mr Bruton said it was totally inappropriate for Mr Collins to take the action he did.
He said Mr Collins needed to sort it out and that Fianna Fáil needed to reflect on the matter.
He added: "Where you cross the line is where you seek to contact a judge about leniency for a convicted drug dealer.
"You are crossing a line that I think every politician should understand that is a line you cannot cross."
The Limerick TD's letter was brought to the attention of Judge Carroll Moran, who was adjudicating on a case at Limerick Circuit Court involving a 40-year-old widower and father-of-four.
Hugo Porter, of Castleconnell in Co Limerick, pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis worth almost €18,000 in a field in Limerick in June 2011.
Mr Collins' letter was one of a number of documents presented to Judge Moran by Mr Porter's defence team during a sentencing hearing this week.
The letter was not read out in court but was referred to when seeking leniency on the basis that Mr Porter's wife had died tragically, that he was the only carer of his children, and that this made the case an exceptional one.
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