Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Collins cannot have it both ways. For the last number of weeks, she was complaining that the Minister for Justice and Equality was impacting on GSOC, which is completely independent. Now, she is telling me that GSOC is not able to do its job. I cannot second-guess what an independent investigative authority will do in regard to any case that comes before it. It is not for the Minister for Justice and Equality, the Government or anybody else to tell it what to do. We have had GSOC in before the committee at length. Last week, the allegation was that the Government or the Minister for Justice and Equality were attempting to do down GSOC in its independence. Now, the Deputy is telling me something entirely different, namely, that it is unable to do its job. The Minister for Justice and Equality has pointed out that the resources and powers in regard to GSOC are going to be improved, because it has been there for a number of years and, clearly, there are inadequacies.

I received the letter from Deputy Luke 'Ming' Flanagan, Deputy Joan Collins, Deputy Mick Wallace and Deputy Clare Daly. They set out about Justice for All and that they handed in documents from 22 members of a group on 17 October last. They said these affidavits documented malpractice and inadequate work by gardaí. I assume these are on behalf of citizens as distinct from members of the force. The range of issues went from quite minor cases of bullying and harassment by gardaí to failure to investigate murder.

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