Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I do not know if any other organisations have views. I know that views were expressed at the time.

My next question relates to something that Mr. Mark Kelly was speaking about when I came back concerning the powers of GSOC to investigate particular matters. I will not go into the allegations that were at issue in the Guerin report, as those will be the subject of a commission of investigation. However, chapter 18, which deals with the role of GSOC, refers to the fact that there was no guarantee of a different disciplinary outcome from the GSOC investigation compared to the internal investigations in An Garda Síochána concerning neglect of supervision and management. It seems to me that a great deal of the issues and problems in the Guerin report relate to a lack of supervision and appropriate management of junior gardaí.

Do GSOC or others believe that one needs strengthened legislative powers to deal with issues - perhaps less so than with direct disciplinary matters - where there has been some clear neglect of supervision or management roles by senior gardaí? Does GSOC feel that currently it can investigate those to appropriate outcomes, or does GSOC need strengthened powers to do so?