Eoghan Kenny (Cork North-Central, Labour)

Okay. In relation to the importation of firearm component parts for privately owned firearms, my party colleague Deputy Alan Kelly has raised this through parliamentary questions on a number of occasions since the Thirty-fourth Dáil began. The Department would be well aware of privately owned firearms, not official Garda firearms, being imported into the State by An Garda Síochána's firearms store section.

The unique aspect to this particular squandering of Exchequer funding is that it was conducted by way of fraudulent deception of the Department.

In response to a parliamentary question from Deputy Kelly, it was said Department officials were deceived by portraying items imported as part of official Garda firearms, when in fact the parts were shown to be service and repair firearms belonging to a hunt and pony club. Former Commissioner Drew Harris was aware of this long before he was replaced by new Commissioner Justin Kelly. He chose not to take any action against those involved. As per parliamentary question replies from the Department, he deliberately neglected to inform the Minister for justice and the Department. Is that correct?