Mr. Drew Harris:

In respect of cadaver dogs, we did have one on up until 2012, but we found that its skills faded because it was not used sufficiently and considerable effort had to go into retraining that dog. The dogs work best when they are being consistently used for the purpose for which they are trained, be it whatever type of scent they are trained to track down, such as money, guns, ammunition, drugs or, in this case, the bodies of deceased individuals.

The Police Service of Northern Ireland, PSNI, has an arrangement with us. It is content to assist us, so its dog gets full operational exposure. The Deputy is right. A dog has an operational lifespan of approximately four years. We will have to co-ordinate carefully with the PSNI because in effect we do not want to be on the island of Ireland without one of these dogs. It may be in the future then that we have to invest in the purchase of a cadaver dog. As it is, there is an ongoing competition for dog handlers. Properly trained dogs, both general purpose dogs and search dogs, are an efficient and useful tactic for us. However, there are other techniques for searching for lost individuals. A lot of work has gone into the forensic recovery of bodies, so the use of a cadaver dog is only just one of the tactics that is available and can give an indication.

In respect of the murder of Michael Gaine, that is a full murder investigation. It is subject to our own policy in respect of murder investigation and that can include a peer review. A peer review is directed in that. I think Michael Gaine went missing on 20 March into 21 March. A considerable period of time has passed. It is nearly three months. This is an opportune time for us to take stock. The team that has been working on this has been completely immersed in it. It is a very recognised investigative tactic, in effect, to ask another set of individuals, who have not been involved in the investigation, to review what has been done and to offer up any other opportunities and lines of inquiry that they think are important. A peer review is standard practice for An Garda Síochána.