Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I will preface my remarks by referring to the sad case of Mr. Kevin Reilly which I have consistently raised with the Minister. It was a very sad murder during which Kevin Reilly was knifed to death. A court case subsequently acquitted the person involved. Mr. Reilly's father, Joe, has been in contact with many politicians, including me as one of his local Deputies. I stress to the Minister that I am upset by references to the case.

While congratulating the Minister on taking this particular initiative, I am upset by the Dean Lyons case. I have great sympathy for the families of Mary Callinan and Sylvia Shiels and I offer my sympathy to them again. As my colleague, Deputy Sexton, has said, I have involved myself in the Dean Lyons case over a number of years. It is a difficult case. I know the Lyons family well and they are constituents of mine. I got to know Dean a little having met him a few times. This debate must be tinged with sadness because references were made to the difficulties he had. Many of us tried to help him but to no avail, so this is a sad occasion.

I welcome what the Minister is setting out to achieve by establishing a commission of investigation. While I realise political points will have to be made, this is an extremely difficult and sad case. As a local Deputy, I have taken a particular interest in the matter and I am sympathetic to the victims, of which there were many in this instance. I am upset and troubled by the fact that, as other colleagues have indicated, no more charges have been brought. Somebody knows the truth and I hope the Minister's statement, that the case is still active as far as the Garda Síochána is concerned, proves to be so. It would bring closure and heal many wounds if the Garda Síochána was able to find sufficient evidence to take a case in this matter. It would be warmly welcomed.

I find it difficult to talk about Dean Lyons because I do not want to say anything insensitive towards his family. I knew Dean, however, and was aware of the difficulties he had. We were all deeply shocked when he was charged with these unfortunate murders. Many people were upset by the way in which the matter developed, not just in my community where people were upset on behalf of the Lyons family but also in the wider Dublin region and I suspect throughout the country. This is one of those cases that touched the public psyche. A long time has passed since March 1997 but there has not been any closure on this case.

Many people will watch this debate and hope that some good will come of it. I have no difficulty with colleagues making political points, although I will not do so. It is important to welcome the Minister's announcement of the investigation and we should acknowledge what is being done in this regard. I wish Mr. George Bermingham, who is known on all sides of the House, well in this particular investigation. We know the skills he will bring to it. I hope the work of the commission of investigation will be far reaching and that it will examine all issues of concern. I also hope it will take particular account of the sensitivities of all the families involved in this tragedy. Those families will clearly be looking seriously at what emerges. There is a strong view that at the end of the day a real conclusion should come about and that some closure will be brought to this case.

I hope the Minister will use his considerable skills to ensure that the Garda investigation continues in that regard. I do not wish to patronise him but I believe the Minister, Deputy McDowell, is the man to achieve this. There will be much support for his efforts from my constituency. This case also caused much concern in the Grangegorman area. I was a member of the health board at the time and I saw evidence of that concern. I also visited the scene of the murders. People in my constituency and in Dublin generally were upset and concerned for Dean Lyons and his family. There will be support for what we are trying to achieve.

I look forward to the Minister providing further information as this process goes forward. He has my support and I hope that some good will come from this.

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