Niall Collins, Fianna Fáil's spokesperson on Justice and Equality, has released a statement on the controversy over his writing a letter to the judge asking that a drug dealer not be jailed. Here is the full text o fthat statement:

"There has been considerable and understandable media comment about my decision to write a letter to the court considering the case of an individual convicted of an offence in Limerick. While I would have preferred to avoid comment until the conclusion of this case, the level of public interest prevents this.

“I fully understand and respect the absolute independence of any sentencing judge in making their decision based on the facts put before them during any trial. If my actions suggest anything other than total respect for judicial independence that is a source of genuine regret.

“To be very clear, I wrote the letter outlining the exceptional circumstances of this family as the four children lost their mother through suicide earlier this year and I truly believed that the judge should be made aware of these tragic circumstances so that they could be taken into consideration when sentencing.

“My decision was based solely on compassion and concern for the four children. Sentencing in this case has been deferred until October and I do not intend to speak about it any further.”