McAleese denies scaling back of work
Monday, 22 May 2006 20:11
The President, Mary McAleese, has strongly denied a report that the community outreach work carried out in Northern Ireland by herself and her husband, Dr Martin McAleese, is being scaled back.
President McAleese, speaking at the University of Notre Dame in the US, said the outreach work 'was as strong as ever and getting stronger'.
Whilst avoiding any direct comment on an ongoing investigation into an alleged misappropriation of funds destined for a community project in Belfast, the President said she would be very concerned but would not let herself be 'paralysed by every setback'.
On the issue of asylum seekers in Ireland, the President said that while some may feel aggrieved, 'we operate within a legal framework and that legal framework has simply got to be applied and applied fairly'.
