Dr. Richard O'Flaherty:

I suggest that all patients be entitled to their doctor of choice when in custody and it should be a criminal offence for a garda to refuse that, with the matter also to be reported to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC. A protocol should be put in place to protect vulnerable people, which I was trying to describe to the committee. Another vital element can be seen in England and everywhere else. No statement should be taken without a solicitor being present, and it is crazy to allow two detectives to question an illiterate person, a dyslexic or somebody with limited intelligence, essentially by reading a statement to the person. It is crazy in this day and age to have two big gardaí do such a thing, as it is intimidating enough to be in the presence of gardaí. Not having a solicitor present, especially if the person may have been subject to a little bit of intimidation, is not right.

The appointment of free legal aid solicitors and doctors used by gardaí should not come at the discretion of the Garda, and they should not be paid by same. The doctors should have the same independence as a coroner. As in England, the solicitors present when the statements are taken should come from a panel with slots. It should not be at the discretion of gardaí to give money to the free legal aid doctors to make multi-millionaires of the favoured while excluding those whom they do not like.

The methadone issue is a disgrace, as a death occurred in Dublin because of 50 ml of methadone. No history was taken in that case and the gardaí in such cases would call in an assigned doctor, with no knowledge of the patient, who could prescribe methadone willy-nilly. That is not helpful, and we need a methadone programme to be put in place immediately. I contacted the coroner about that case, and I was working as a deputy coroner in Limerick until I got too old. I know what goes on. A garda should not be allowed to collect medicine from pharmacies for patients, and gardaí in stations should be trained in the care of patients. It is a disgrace that they now have control of medicine but have no training in that respect. They do not have training for defibrillator use either, and if somebody collapses, they cannot use the defibrillators.

As a member of Justice4All I supplied to the former Minister, Deputy Shatter, a draft statement which included photographs of beatings I saw in Garda stations carried out by gardaí. He wrote back to tell me that because of my approach, CCTV cameras were to be installed. They have been placed in five locations and there will be 12 more. The former Minister hoped before the end of the year to have them in public areas of stations or where prisoners are being detained. In other words, this would bring safety for a garda who may have an allegation of beating somebody against him or her and safety for the patient who may have the crap beaten out of him or her downstairs. I can show these photographs to the committee, as I took them in the cells and produced them in court. I will not go any further into that.