Madigan is latest FG TD to remove social media photo of Maria Bailey

Now you see it... Tweets by Josepha Madigan yesterday show how she dropped the photo of her friend Maria Bailey

Fionnán Sheahan

Dáil Deputy Maria Bailey has been 'ghosted' from history by another of her Fine Gael friends.

Culture Minister Josepha Madigan removed a photo featuring Ms Bailey, the controversial swing case TD, from her social media. Ms Madigan, the newest member of the Cabinet, has been dragged into controversy over her role in Ms Bailey's infamous swing fall compensation case.

The Dublin Rathdown TD yesterday marked the third anniversary of the opening of her constituency office by then Taoiseach Enda Kenny. The photo on her Twitter posting at 3.44pm showed Mr Kenny cutting a red ribbon, held by Ms Madigan and her two sons, with Ms Bailey also firmly in the photo.

But last night at 6.59pm, Ms Madigan removed the photo with Ms Bailey and replaced it with another featuring her with Mr Kenny, her sons and her husband. The removal of Ms Bailey follows a similar pattern to another of Ms Bailey's southside Dublin Fine Gael TD friends.

Fine Gael TD Kate O'Connell changed her Facebook photo mere moments after her friend and colleague's infamous interview with RTÉ's Sean O'Rourke. The Dublin Bay South TD's 'cover photo' was a picture of her with her sister Mary Newman-Julian, a Fine Gael election candidate for Tipperary, and her close friend Ms Bailey.

The picture had been her Facebook 'cover photo' for the previous two months.

Now you see it... Tweets by Josepha Madigan yesterday show how she dropped the photo of her friend Maria Bailey

But just minutes after Ms Bailey's unforgettable interview on RTÉ Radio 1, Ms O'Connell switched it for a group photo without the now-controversial figure.

Ms Madigan and Ms Bailey served on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council together and were elected as TDs for the first time in 2016, along with Ms O'Connell.

An internal Fine Gael report found Ms Madigan, then a backbench TD, "gave initial legal advice, guidance and assisted Deputy Bailey with her Personal Injuries Assessment Board application".

Ms Madigan did not deal with the subsequent legal proceedings, which were handled by her family's solicitor's firm, Madigans Solicitors, which she no longer works for.

Fine Gael and the minister's spokesperson were contacted for comment.