![\"BBC](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/c8a4\/live\/08206830-8401-11ef-9b8b-8d7d5e354c54.jpg.webp\")
BBC <\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\nFearghal McKinney, head of the BHF in Northern Ireland, said it is important to correct the record as the charity has suffered reputational damage due to the fall out.<\/p>\n \u201cThis caused enormous distress and anxiety among our staff and unwavering supporters,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On Wednesday, O’Neill said there were lessons for a lot of people in terms of “due diligence<\/a> for an employer when they take on an employee\u201d.<\/p>\n Mr McKinney said O’Neill has “expressed regret” about the comments.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was quite clear that whenever comments were made about due diligence that there was only one other organisation that employed him since he was employed by Sinn F\u00e9in, so clearly there was a reflection on us,” he told BBC News NI.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to have support from the public \u2013 close supporters, volunteers, staff,\u201d he said, adding that \u201cany damage caused to that at all\u201d can \u201cundermine the good work\u201d of the charity.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen this happened and there was damage caused, as we saw it, to our reputation, added damage we thought around the public comments that were made, we had to do something to make sure that the record was put straight,\u201d Mr McKinney said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re content that we have done everything in our power in order of keeping all our supporters, all our staff and the wider public that\u2019s connected with us safe and they know that that\u2019s what the standard that the British Heart Foundation applies.\u201d<\/p>\n The work references were provided three months after McMonagle was dismissed from the party while under police investigation.<\/p>\n Sinn F\u00e9in said this happened without clearance from the party and described the press officers’ actions as wrong and unacceptable.<\/p>\n Se\u00e1n Mag Uidhir and Caol\u00e1n McGinley have resigned from their roles at the party<\/a>. <\/p>\n When asked if the charity was aware of the reasons for McMonagle leaving Sinn F\u00e9in, Mr McKinney replied: \u201cWe knew nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n The leaders of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) have called for O’Neill to be questioned in the Assembly over the issue<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n Mr McKinney said he spoke with O\u2019Neill on Saturday morning and that she offered \u201cwords of regret and apology about what has happened\u201d.<\/p>\n He said in the phone call he outlined the hiring process McMonagle went through, as well as the \u201crobust internal investigation\u201d that he said took place after the charity learned of the charges.<\/p>\n \u201cMichelle O\u2019Neill agreed recent comments by her and party colleagues questioning the BHF\u2019s due diligence process were unhelpful, and she expressed regret for the damage and upset this has caused to our dedicated staff and supporters,” he told BBC’s Good Morning Ulster programme.<\/p>\n \u201cI wish to reiterate that the BHF is confident we undertook all necessary statutory and moral duties required throughout this entire process.<\/p>\n \u201cThe tone of the phone call and the words of the phone call was sufficient for us to feel confident that, in fact, the situation and the record has been put absolutely straight.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWe reached out to Sinn F\u00e9in to let them know that the comments around the nearness of their knowledge about this was not the reality and that in fact we had been talking to a HR official in Sinn F\u00e9in over a year before,\u201d said Mr McKinney.<\/p>\n O’Neill confirmed on Saturday that a human resources (HR) manager had been contacted by the charity in August 2023, but added the party’s leadership had not been made aware of this.<\/p>\n In a statement on Saturday, she described this as “a serious omission”.<\/p>\n‘Due diligence’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/bbcx\/grey-placeholder.png\")
![\"Reuters](\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/480\/cpsprodpb\/cc36\/live\/3456fa00-83fb-11ef-8702-79eb224b4a35.jpg.webp\")
Reuters<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n‘Words of regret and apology’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
‘Appalled and horrified’ <\/h2>\n<\/p>\n