Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I am not sure I can deal with all of this in five minutes but I will do my best.

I will begin by responding to the amendment Deputy Calleary has tabled and to what was said by Members of the House. Clearly, those who spoke were not listening to what I said when I explained the reason for the moving of the motion. We cannot accept Deputy Calleary's amendment and I want to draw particular reference to the content of it. He is asking for the House to resolve that "the Minister for Justice and Equality should prepare for the Oireachtas a detailed report outlining all relevant information and arguments concerning the work of the Tribunal". That is the first part of it.

With regard to the work of the tribunal, neither myself nor Deputy Calleary are engaged in the work of the tribunal, and properly so. This motion seeks to require the tribunal, by the end of June, to furnish us details of its workings. This is a tribunal that has sat in private for six years and has not yet held a substantive oral hearing. We have a duty to the bereaved families of these two RUC officers to ascertain background to where the tribunal now stands procedurally in meeting its obligations pursuant to the motion tabled by this House.

The amendment tabled by Fianna Fáil refers in two different parts to the work of the tribunal being curtailed and wants consultations to be undertaken in advance of any proposals to curtail the work. I have made it resolutely clear that this is not about curtailing the work. This is about ensuring that this tribunal is meeting its obligations pursuant to the motions passed in this House and in the Seanad over six years ago in circumstances in which there has not been even the commencement of an oral hearing.

I noticed that all of the Deputies who expressed opposition to this motion failed to mention the fact that the original motion envisaged that after ten days of oral hearings there would be an interim report. I am presuming those Deputies do not oppose an interim report being given to this House and this motion will facilitate an interim report being produced within four weeks after the oral hearings have commenced.

The second aspect, and the question I was asked by the last speaker, concerns the reason this motion does not state that if the tribunal requires additional time it can write to the Clerk of the Dáil, correspond with Members of the House or do something or other. It is because it is not necessary. This tribunal has within its terms of reference the capacity to communicate with the Houses of the Oireachtas if it needs to do so. In the context of the time-line prescribed, I reiterate it is a time-line that Judge Smithwick indicated prior to the motion being he believes he will meet. I do not know if he will meet it but he has indicated he will meet it and in that context we believed it was reasonable that after six years there would be some public transparency with regard to both an interim report and when the final report might be expected. Procedurally, if this tribunal gets into difficulty it is open to the tribunal to communicate with the Houses of the Oireachtas and as I have already stated, if it cannot complete its work under the remit given to it, and if there is good reason it cannot, in those circumstances it is clear the Government will move an appropriate motion in this House. In so far as anyone is suggesting that anything is being done to interfere with the integrity of the tribunal, undermine the work of the tribunal or prevent the tribunal in its own judgment reporting to this House expressing opinions and making recommendations as prescribed by the motion, it is an incorrect presentation.

It is correct that the lawyer representing the bereaved family of one of the deceased RUC officers has expressed public concern about this matter in Northern Ireland. I was engaged with him in a broadcast on BBC Northern Ireland and I repeated what I have said in this House. All I can do is repeat those assurances. These two RUC officers suffered a barbaric death at the hands of those who were responsible for their deaths. After six years of this tribunal being in place this Government wants to ensure that, in terms of any suspicion or suggestion of any description that anyone associated with or a member of the Garda Síochána was in any way complicit in their deaths, we know what the position is and the conclusions of the tribunal.

Deputy Calleary suggested that I had received a communication from the Chairman of the tribunal, Judge Smithwick, to which no reply had been sent. I have received a communication from Judge Smithwick since the moving of this motion became known and a reply has been sent and there has been an exchange of correspondence between us. I have no difficulty, when that correspondence is concluded, in placing that correspondence in the Library of this House. The original correspondence I received from him was marked private and confidential. As I understand it, as of today, he now has no objection to that correspondence being made public. Transparency in this matter is very important because I do not want there to be any suspicion of any description that this Government, or I as Minister, have in any way interfered with the proper workings of the tribunal and therefore when that correspondence is concluded, it will be put on the record of the House.

In the light of what I have said I am hoping that Deputy Calleary may decide not to divide the House on this issue. This House was united in setting up this tribunal. I believe we have a duty to the bereaved families of these two brutally assassinated RUC officers. We have a public duty to people on this island and in this State to ensure that when a tribunal is established, it does not have an indefinite duration to continue with work in private and never report to the Houses of the Oireachtas or give some indication on whether progress is being made, on the likely time needed to complete its work, and the number of witnesses that may be called. These are all issues to which there is no clarity at the moment. The interim report will provide that clarity.

The motion that is passed will focus on the serious, substantive issues that this tribunal has been asked to address. I hope it proves possible for this tribunal to complete its work within the time prescribed. As a Member of this House and as a former practising lawyer, I am conscious that all sorts of issues could arise which may make it impossible for the tribunal to meet that timeline. If so, this House will be asked to take appropriate action to ensure the tribunal fully completes its work and has the time available to do so.

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