Fianna Fáil TD Frank Fahey has again defended his role in the Lost at Sea Scheme which was set up to help fishermen who lost vessels in the 1980s.
Late last year the Ombudsman criticised aspects of the scheme and said a Donegal family who were denied entry to it should be awarded compensation.
Those findings were rejected by the Department of Agriculture.
Today in the Dáil, the Galway West TD rejected any suggestions of wrongdoing amid opposition claims that he engaged in political cronyism.
68 applications were made to scheme, six were successful, two of whom constituents of Frank Fahey's.
The Dáil also heard from the minister now in charge of the scheme, Tony Killeen, who repeated that no payment should be made to the Donegal family who were denied entry to the scheme.
Compensation was recommended by the Ombudsman.
