Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I want to take the Minister back to some of the information he provided earlier today, where he said the Garda Commissioner's letter explained: "there was a legislative underpinning of such recording contained in an Act of 2007". Can I take it from this that there was no legislative underpinning of these recordings up to 2007? Can I take it also that there is at least a likelihood and possibility that these recordings were illegal and in breach of the law and that offences could have been committed? Is this an issue the Minister wishes to pursue? Does he want to pursue the issue that whoever sanctioned these recordings had no legislative underpinning and could have been in breach of legislation?

The second issue I wish to ask about concerns the Attorney General. The Minister provided the Dáil with information that the Attorney General was made aware on 11 November 2003 of the existence of the tapes and of the possible existence of other tapes. He then went on to say that she had no knowledge at the time of the circumstances surrounding the making of the tapes, the background to their being made, the content or the number of tapes. The Minister has told us what she did not know, but what did she know? Did the Garda Commissioner phone her and say they had found some tapes - perhaps they could have been recordings of the latest documentary - and did she not ask what they were about? I am sure she knew they were tapes of conversations within Garda stations. She must at least have had that basic information. If not, when did she get the basic information on them?

Is the Minister alarmed, with the passage of a number of months, that this information was not brought to his attention? When this information was brought to the attention of the Taoiseach, it resulted in a commission of inquiry. Unfortunately, we see in the courts today that it has resulted in an impact on trials that are due to take place. Therefore, is the Minister concerned that the legal adviser to the State did not bring this to his attention when she found out the seriousness of the issue?

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