Barry Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Members of An Garda Síochána, no more than anyone else in the workforce or the Civil Service, have been finding it difficult and there was a fine opportunity in recent weeks and months for the Minister to take a leaf out of the option in the Croke Park agreement where there was independent representation for An Garda Síochána during the reviews of that agreement. It would have done the Minister no harm, and it would have done him much favour amongst the workforce within An Garda Síochána, if he had allowed a similar mechanism for those to have their voices heard during the recent Croke Park II negotiations. Their pay, allowances and premiums were being slashed by his colleagues in government in those proposals and those on lower pay and at the front line were being decimated in those proposals. There was an opening for the Minister to gain some credibility but, as usual, he lost it.

His colleague, the Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan, stated on television the other night that Deputy Shatter is a great Minister, one of the most hard-working Ministers in Cabinet, a workaholic and a reforming Minister.

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