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23 Jan 2026
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23 Jan 2026
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Patricia Ryan was a Kildare TD who sat alongside Brian Stanley in the Dáil as Sinn Féin TDs before both quit party.
Laios TD Brian Stanley has recruited a former Sinn Féin TD who left the party acrimoniously around the same time as he quit in controversial circumstances.
The Portlaoise-based representative has hired Patricia Ryan as his parliamentary assistant on an annual salary of
€48,483.
Members of Dáil Éireann are entitled to one full-time Administrative Assistant and may choose to employ one full-time Parliamentary Assistant under the Scheme.
Ms Ryan was elected to the Dáil in 2020 in her first General Election as a Sinn Féin TD for South Kildare. Her success achieved extra attention as she was away on holiday during the campaign.
Patricia Ryan announced in October 2024 that she was resigning from Sinn Féin ahead of the party’s selection convention for the Kildare constituency.
In an interview with Kfm on Kildare Today at the time of her resignation, she said she had felt “curtailed,” “undermined,” and “intimidated” within the party.
She lost her seat at the 2024 General election, with just 678 first preference votes, a 93% drop in votes compared to her 2020 result.
Just a few days after Ms Ryan left, her new employer also quit the party. Dep Stanley quits Sinn Féin after a ‘gross misconduct’ allegation arising from an interaction with a former Sinn Féin member.
READ ALSO: Laois TD tackles Education Minister
Dep Stanley said the inquiry, which led to the finding, “resembled a type of kangaroo court”.
Ms Ryan confirmed her new appointment to the Irish Independent but declined to go into detail.
“I’ve nothing to say on the job, other than I’m extremely happy with the job and I’m very grateful for it,” she said.
The Leinster Express / Laois Live has asked Dep Stanley for comment.
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