Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Much like the penalty points controversy, the Minister says he will send the results of an already constitutionally flawed and biased investigation to the children's Ombudsman for review. The children's Ombudsman will only be reviewing a biased report, which is not primary evidence, and she cannot ask questions. This is entirely unsatisfactory. The Minister and his PR machine are attempting to impart a sheen of legitimacy to this flawed approach by asking for the children's Ombudsman's stamp of approval on another internal review.

Likewise, the Minister is not publishing the terms of reference. It would appear again that the focus of the review is narrow. It is just wide enough to satisfy the public, but not enough to cause any real change within the culture of the Garda Síochána.

I am sure the Minister is well aware that in February 2013, the report of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance found that the Garda Síochána engages in racial profiling. The commission called on the Irish Government to introduce legislation to prohibit racial profiling. This is an opportunity for the State and the Garda Síochána to initiate a Stephen Lawrence type of inquiry and to assess the conduct, codes and protocols of the Garda Síochána.

In his book on human rights and policing, Professor Dermot Walsh states that we cannot say whether Garda codes, practices and procedures are human rights compliant because these codes and protocols are not published. Professor Walsh said there is a need for cultural change, transparency, accountability to the public and human rights compliance in the Garda Síochána. Is the Minister brave enough, and does he have the courage, to bring this about?

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