Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

I wish to share time with Deputy McGinley.

I ask the Minister to make provision for legal representation for the McBrearty family at the Morris tribunal. The Taoiseach stated in the Dáil this morning that his legal advice was that the tribunal alone could allocate costs after a particular module was completed. I do not dispute this advice regarding the power of the tribunal but ask that an arrangement be made similar to that made by the then Minister for Health and Children in April 2000 with the Irish Haemophilia Society regarding the Lindsay tribunal which enabled the society and its members to be legally represented for the duration of the tribunal. The arrangement worked perfectly well and a similar arrangement was made with regard to the victims of the Stardust fire in 1981. It may not be fully within the Minister's remit, but I am asking that the Morris tribunal briefly adjourn its activities while a suitable formula is worked out for granting legal representation.

The Morris tribunal was set up in 2002 mainly to deal with the injustices perpetrated on the McBrearty family by agents of the State. It has now been sitting for 320 days and at no stage has the McBrearty family received legal costs although they must attend daily and co-operate with the tribunal at all times. Television cameras recently showed a car boot containing reams of documents served by the tribunal on Frank McBrearty senior. Members of the family must research vast quantities of documentation and argue their case without the benefit of legal training or representation. At the same time, Mr. Justice Morris, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, the Garda Commissioner, the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors and the Garda Representative Association have all retained teams of lawyers for the duration of the tribunal.

The McBrearty family are no ordinary witnesses at the tribunal; they are at the heart of the Morris inquiry. Garda treatment of this family prompted the Morris tribunal to be established by the Oireachtas in 2002. What happened to the family over a sustained period is a grave matter of public importance. It is ironic and perverse that the McBreartys are the only participants who do not have the benefit of legal representation. They are discriminated against. Legal costs are now a barrier to justice for the family.

What is the value of proceeding with a tribunal that does not allow for meaningful engagement by the people at its heart? What credibility can its final report have? A fortune has already been spent by the State on legal costs and there is little sense in spending more money on an inquiry that has become quite farcical. Tribunals for the average citizen who is personally exposed as distinct from being sheltered by the State or by representative organisations have come to the point of being inoperable. We have a real problem which will not be resolved by the Minister burying his head in the sand or quoting law. It is time to recognise the reality, be brave, do the proper thing and stand by the spirit of Article 40 of the Constitution which states that "All citizens shall, as human persons, be held equal before the law."

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