Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Taoiseach to address the House on this very important issue. I greatly welcome the establishment of this commission of investigation and commend the Taoiseach on his swift and, indeed, decisive action in establishing it. As an organisation, An Garda Síochána has always enjoyed public confidence and is held in high regard among the people. However, recent revelations and events have raised some serious questions. The people want answers to those questions and it is our responsibility, as a Government, to seek to provide them.

I hope the establishment of the commission of investigation, with its comprehensive terms of reference as outlined to the House by the Taoiseach, will provide the necessary answers and explanations to the questions raised concerning the recording of telephone conversations at Garda stations. While we all support the Garda for its work on our behalf, no one would wish its members to engage in any improper or unlawful acts, although I am not suggesting this was the case.

The decision of the Government to keep hold of all the tapes and establish an inventory in order to make appropriate arrangements for them to be available to the commission, along with the formation of a Cabinet committee on justice reform to oversee the process, is also to be welcomed.

In any functioning democracy, the good standing of its police force is essential. The public need to have full confidence in the work of An Garda Síochána, given the central role the organisation plays in society. In my view, every State organisation should be subject to periodic review, not only to ensure that it meets the needs of the public but also to ensure it is being run appropriately. I hope the membership of An Garda Síochána engage fully with the process, because they are in the best position to inform, advise and offer recommendations for change.

This investigation, along with the Guerin and Cooke reports, provides a great opportunity to address the overall architecture of policing. It will also improve oversight, and confidence in oversight, about which the public have doubts. This is far too grave and serious an issue to be subjected to political point-scoring, although I suggest this is what has occurred.

I am confident that the commission of investigation will provide all the answers to the questions asked by Senator Darragh O'Brien this evening, for instance. The Minister for Justice and Equality is a reforming Minister who has introduced significant reforming legislation since his appointment. These reforms will continue when he introduces the DNA database Bill and the Irish human rights and equality commission Bill in this House next month.

I commend the Taoiseach on his decision, which we should all agree is the best way of seeking the answers to the questions that many of us are asking.