Dáil debates

Friday, 17 June 2005

Morris Tribunal: Statements.

 

10:30 am

Photo of Michael McDowellMichael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

It was in June 2001. My letter stated that in the context of the law as it then stood — which was that all tribunals of inquiry had to conduct all of their proceedings in public and receive evidence in public and not otherwise — it was my opinion that at that time the pending criminal prosecutions would tend to be seriously prejudiced and compromised and that it was better in those circumstances to let them proceed, but if they proceeded and were inconclusive, or if the civil proceedings which had been launched, were brought to a conclusion or settled without the full truth emerging, a tribunal of inquiry would then be the appropriate way to deal with the issue.

People have been labouring under the false impression that first, the then Minister, Deputy O'Donoghue, was in some sense not anxious to have an inquiry and this is the diametric opposite of the truth and second, it has been stated that I, as Attorney General, was not keen on having an inquiry and that is the diametric opposite of the truth.

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