Aengus O Snodaigh admits to using loads of ink cartridges but insists he “did nothing wrong”

Yesterday Sinn Fein TD Aengus O Snodaigh admitted to costing taxpayers a massive €50,000 due to his excessive need to print things.

It was revealed that O Snodaigh had been taking printer cartridges from Leinster House over the past two years and despite costing us a ridiculous amount of money, the TD has insisted: “I did nothing wrong.”

The Irish Daily Star reports that Mr O Snodaigh defended his use of the toner cartridges and denied that he was a freeloader. But if you were waiting for O Snodaigh to pay back the €50,000 he owes, don’t hold your breath. Speaking yesterday the TD said that he will not be paying back any of the money.

He claims that the cartridges he took were used to print leaflets for his constituency, and when he took them in 2007 and 2008 he wasn’t breaking any rules as Leinster House had none at the time.

The Irish Daily Star asked O Snodaigh yesterday if he thought he had a moral obligation to repay the money back to the taxpayer.

“I don’t have a moral obligation but if the Houses of the Oireachtas ask all of the TDs to pay back money from toners, I have no problem looking at that,” he said.

“This is not about gesture politics. It is taxpayers’ money but it is not as if I put this money in my pocket and walked away scot-free. All of the cartridges were used to print material,” he added.

Maybe the reason why he couldn’t fit any money in his pockets is because they were so full of ink cartridges…

O Snodaigh insists that the toners were used only for his constituency work and denied that they were used for party campaigns.

The Jack & Jill Foundation, a children’s charity, has already written to the TD and asked him to send his used cartridges to them for recycling - maybe he can take them up on this offer to show the public that he is willing to aTONE for his behaviour (hah!)

But seriously, he should. They're a great charity and if the taxpayer isn't going to benefit from this scandal, some sick children definitely should.