Katherine Zappone (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. Purcell for his presentation. I wish to pose questions in respect of a couple of points he made. During his presentation Mr. Purcell stated, "Neither the Department nor the Minister are investigatory bodies or have investigatory powers." My question in that regard relates to issues raised in the Guerin report. Why was an investigation not undertaken by the Department into the allegations put forward by Sergeant McCabe and, in particular, why was such an investigation not conducted in 2012 when the confidential recipient wrote to the Minister regarding allegations made against the Garda Commissioner? Such an investigation would be required under the terms of the 2007 regulations, section 8 of which states: "On receipt of such a report, the Minister, unless he or she has reason to believe that the allegation contained in it was not made in good faith or is false, frivolous or vexatious, shall cause the allegation to be investigated or take such other action as he or she considers appropriate in the circumstances."