Luke Flanagan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Government has been in power for three years but urgency and three years do not really go together. If the former Minister had been a reforming Minister, he would have taken on board Deputy Wallace's policing Bill last July. The reality, however, is that the Government is not taking it seriously. There have been circumstances in this country requiring the introduction of legislation overnight. Examples include the legislation to close headshops because of the Government's concerns over drug use. There are now circumstances where heroin dealing and the Garda Síochána are being connected. Can we have overnight legislation on this? An amendment to the Garda Act 2005 would allow serving members of An Garda Síochána to make a complaint to GSOC. It is suggested that in section 82 of the 2005 Act, " "member of the public" means a person other than the Garda Commissioner and includes serving and former members of An Garda Síochána" be substituted for " "member of the public" means a person other than a member of the Garda Síochána or the Garda Commissioner". This is because the individual in question is taking a grave risk today. He is bringing the information to someone for whom I have no disrespect as she is doing the job she has to do but the information will be brought to the acting Garda Commissioner. That is not ideal. We need to be reassured that we will not have what happened last week, in other words, tittle tattle coming down the line, including in the form of the Garda car that followed the former member of the Garda and the current member. I know the Taoiseach wanted to make a joke out of it and say the gardaí were following me. We need to be assured that when the information goes to the acting Garda Commissioner, it will not filter down the line and scupper what the people to whom I refer are trying to achieve. Nicky Keogh is a hero. I wish I knew more heroes like him. There are plenty of them in the Garda Síochána. He has done them proud today and I hope they will shake his hand rather than tie a knot in a rat's tail and put it on his door.

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