Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that.

While I may not be in favour of everything the G8 summit stands for, I am delighted it is to be held in this country. I am delighted it is to be held in County Fermanagh. I am delighted with the exposure County Fermanagh is getting. It is a fabulous county and I have travelled every inch of it during the years. Its lake district is beautiful from a tourist's perspective. It is a county of small farmers. However, havoc has been wreaked on it, including by the Enniskillen bomb and other incidents.

I am not making little of what my colleague said or is worried about. We are all worried about overzealous action by all police forces, certainly in times of heightened tension when so-called important people are attending an event. The summit will result in great exposure and it is only right that most modern countries have the powers covered in the legislation.

We have seen that the tracing of mobile telephone calls was responsible for the solving of a very serious murder case recently. We all expect that the powers will be used only as a last resort and for a limited time. The Minister states there is a 24 hour limit on the time for which an authorisation may be acted upon and that it must be withdrawn after six hours. Will he clarify whether an authorisation may be acted upon at any time within a 24 hour period and that it can last only for six hours?

The Minister has stated a Garda chief superintendent may give a direction only where he or she is satisfied that the serious threat continues and where other means of averting the threat are less likely to succeed. We live in very sophisticated times and must obviously take every threat seriously. Those of us with children can see that they can do anything with mobile phones. They can do a lot more than I can do. I can text, read messages and send e-mails; that is all. The circumstances are very serious.

The Minister may give authorisation only if satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for believing there is a serious threat; if there is a reasonable prospect that cessation of mobile phone services within a geographical area would be of material assistance in averting the threat; and having regard to all the circumstances, including the importance of maintaining mobile phone services in the area concerned and the effect on users, that cessation of services is necessary and proportionate. I hope that will be the case.

With all the talk about An Garda Síochána in recent times, it is time for us to focus on the job it does. On 99.9% of occasions, the job of gardaí is very difficult. They provide a good service for the State and do their best. They use discretion every hour of every day. I am sure discretion is one of the first aspects of their duties. If they did not exercise discretion, the courts would be full and clogged up. There ought to be discretion and gardaí use it wisely.

The Minister stated:

A central element of the part is in the proposed section 24 which provides for a member of the Garda Síochána of chief superintendent rank or higher [this is very senior], having received a ministerial authorisation, to direct a mobile phone service provider to cease providing services in a particular area at a particular time. This power to issue a direction is subject to a range of checks and balances...

We have dealt with some of the checks and balances. It must be embarrassing for the Minister today. He was here last night to answer questions on this matter. He ought to enjoy the total belief and trust of the community. Organisations such as Muintir na Tíre and Community Alert, of which I have been a member since 1985 or 1986, are encouraging people all the time to support An Garda Síochána. The force cannot police without the support of the public; that is a recognised fact among police forces all over the world. What has happened this morning and the Minister's replies and non-replies about little chitchats with the Commissioner are undermining this. With regard to the G8 summit and everything else, we need the support of the public. Policemen cannot be in every field in County Fermanagh and every shed and haystack. The eyes and ears of the public are vital, including south of the Border. The trust has been shattered - pardon the pun. It is a very serious issue and I am not sure the Minister realises it, although he ought to. He was not invited to the GRA conference and other events. There are many complicating factors. He should come off his high horse and engage with gardaí and support them at rank and file level.

I ask that some attention be paid to the ongoing problem of smuggling, which is considerable. This morning we learned of a successful raid on a location by Customs officers and armed gardaí. Powers such as those included in the legislation and resources must be given to the Garda to tackle the problem.

RGData and other groups made presentations to Oireachtas Members. Ordinary businesses have been wiped out by the illegal trade in fuel and cigarettes. My good wife is from Monaghan. South of the Border, adjoining counties Fermanagh and Tyrone, the farming community is being cleaned out. Cattle, sheep and equipment are being stolen. There are marauding gangs that seem to operate with impunity. Why can we not introduce certain powers to put them away?

I received a letter from the Minister last week. He might consider the serious report he received from the Omagh bomb victims and deal with it appropriately. He might consider what he promised in opposition and what Deputy Flanagan has asked him to do, namely, reopen the Fr. Niall Molloy murder case. He should live up to the promises he made in opposition and, above all, do his duty as Minister for Justice and Equality to give confidence to the public, support the Garda and give it the tools of the trade.

This is serious legislation which I support, but the Minister might ask the Commissioner in his next chitchat or briefing to sign off on the text alert initiative being supported by Muintir na Tíre which was launched in my county last week. Tremendous work has been done to prevent crime and support the Garda. The system is to be run through the Garda, not by a private militia or anything else. For some reason, however, the Commissioner is reluctant to sign off on the initiative. The assistant commissioner has agreed to it and community groups are ready to proceed. Signs are up and research and work have been done, yet the go-ahead cannot be obtained from the Minister and the Commissioner. The Minister might overrule the Commissioner, if necessary, because the initiative is community supported. It has been cleared by An Garda Síochána at all levels, except at the top, where there is a blockage. The Minister has plenty of work to do with regard to the faith we all have in An Garda Síochána. He should support the force or else do the honourable thing, move to some other Ministry or return to his law practice.

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