Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I do not think there can be any argument about the means used to put this information out. The question is should a Minister use information against a political opponent which has been given to him or her by a member of An Garda Síochána. That is the nub of the question.

The way in which the whistleblowers in this case were dealt with was completely unsatisfactory. There has not even been an independent investigation by the Garda Ombudsman. These folks brought forward their concerns to the appropriate Garda authorities and they were ignored. They brought forward their concerns to the Comptroller and Auditor General and they were ignored. They were never interviewed. There is some suggestion that they were anonymous but that is not the case; they put their names to their concerns. They have been in an awful situation since and one of them has been forced to resign. This matter needs to be examined.

What is really annoying people is the attitude of the Minister. The Taoiseach has said the Minister should not resign. I acknowledge that is within the gift of the Minister and of the Taoiseach. However, could the Taoiseach provide for a truly independent investigation into this penalty points debacle, including the Minister's handling of the whole affair? Could that be done as a means to try to restore some confidence in the claims the Taoiseach has made about this being a different form of governance and a cleaner, fairer and very transparent Government? Patently that is not the case.

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