Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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There are two questions there and I will answer the second one first, in the affirmative. I have said that the new insertion into the 2005 Act is crafted to be in tandem and consistent with the Bill as drafted, which is why it is drafted in that way. It is our intention - there was a formal Government decision on this - to make GSOC the recipient of complaints or disclosures. If I can formalise that, even if it is discordant with the rest of the Act, I will do so. I just want to get the advice of the Attorney General first.

On the second point made by Deputy McDonald about the public interest, I have removed that as a hurdle to be overcome before anybody, whether a worker in the public or private sphere, can avail of the protections in the Protected Disclosures Bill. That will apply to gardaí in the same way as to everybody else. The public interest test in terms of what should be investigated by GSOC is from the Garda Síochána Act, save for the exception which Deputy Fleming read out, where GSOC "shall" do it where there is a death or serious injury.