Dr Farry was speaking after the Committee echoed Alliance calls for Finance Minister Mairtin O Muilleoir to step aside while such an inquiry takes place into the actions of former Sinn Fein MLA Daithi McKay, who was implicated in a series of Twitter direct messages with loyalist Jamie Bryson before the latter’s appearance at the Committee.
“The Finance Commissioner and Assembly Standards Commissioner will both be looking at this issue, which gives the potential for the bodies to be at cross-purpose and therefore important aspects to be missed without an independent inquiry,” he said.
“This issue needs to be above party politicking and broader than just who knew what but also to see how far the Committee’s Nama investigation was compromised, if the public’s confidence is to be restored.”