Ireland’s Jewish Justice Minister Resigns Over Government Report

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By JTA May 8, 2014

Ireland’s Justice Minister Alan Shatter, the only Jewish lawmaker in the Irish government, has resigned.

Shatter offered his surprise resignation Wednesday in advance of a 300-page report from a state-ordered investigation that said his office mishandled the complaints of police corruption by a whistleblower, according to Irish media reports. He has served in the position for three years.

Shatter survived a no-confidence motion in the Irish parliament last month.

In April, the Irish Army’s bomb squad was sent to Shatter’s Dublin home to remove a package containing an unidentified white powder and anti-Semitic material. The white powder was discovered to be harmless.

Prime Minister Enda Kenny told the Dali, or lower house of the Irish Parliament, that the incident was a “new low” for the country.

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