Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

This matter was discussed on Committee Stage when the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Lenihan, was dealing with it rather than I. In English, right back to 1925, every time that we have referred to the force in legislation, it has been "the Garda Síochána". That is the long-standing tradition in every statute that this House has enacted. The title of the force in English is therefore "the Garda Síochána" and in Irish "An Garda Síochána". That is how we have always proceeded in this House. We have never departed from that as far as I am aware. One can get into difficulties with the definite article in either language.

However, let us be clear about this. If one were talking about the gardaí who came to one's house the night and did X or Y, no one would expect one to say "na gardaí who came to my house last night did X and Y". We use the English definite article when we are speaking English even though we use the Irish plural to refer to members of the force. That has been the long-standing tradition. Deputy Ó Snodaigh knows as well as I do that there would be linguistic infelicities, to put it mildly, if we used "An Garda Síochána" throughout the Bill. He only has to look to the Long Title of the Bill to see there are uses of an tuiseal ginideach agus an tuisil tabharthach. If one is to say that they disappear when one uses the title An Garda Síochána in the English language, it only makes a nonsense of the Irish.

Tá deacrachtaí ann, ach b'fhearr liom ár dtraidisiún a choimeád agus "the Garda Síochána" to be the English reference and "An Garda Síochána" to be the reference in the Irish language.

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