Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

At the outset, I formally express my good wishes to the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Fitzgerald, in what is a very challenging role. I have no doubt she is up to the task and hope it goes well for her. It is worth noting that there has been a dearth of Government backbenchers in this debate, which speaks volumes about the priorities of some. It is regrettable that they have not recognised the importance of the issue by contributing to the debate.

I welcome the Guerin report, which is a good one and a model that can be used in other investigations. It was produced in a timely fashion and is straightforward and lacking in jargon. It is to the point and deals with the issues at hand without attempting to gloss over any. It does not pull any punches and is matter-of-fact. I commend it on that basis. It includes critical findings on the manner in which the whistleblowers were treated and the failure of the system within the Garda itself and within the Department of Justice and Equality, as well as at a political level, to recognise what was regarded as a contrary voice. A critical voice within the Garda must be welcomed and viewed as an important aspect of the health of the organisation. The report refers to the strengths of Sergeant McCabe in particular and the validation of his commitment to the job by several of his colleagues. It makes recommendations on a number of procedural issues in the Garda and the Department of Justice and Equality with reference to the manner in which the latter failed to deal with genuine complaints. Very significant issues are thereby raised as to the functioning of the Department, which warrant urgent, serious and thorough investigation.

The critical thing about this whole saga is not that these things have happened. It is recognised across the world that in any police force there is potential for wrongdoing, misappropriation, mishandling of cases and misconduct. There is an onus on the political system to ensure that there are proper oversight procedures and structures in place to limit the potential for abuse. What is clearly required is an independent Garda authority which keeps the Garda force at arm's length from Government and ensures that it is accountable to the public and that proper procedures are followed. Unfortunately, the Government has resisted strongly the clear demand to do something about that. Last year the then Minister, Deputy Alan Shatter, said we could not afford to have an independent Garda authority. Clearly, we cannot afford not to have one. I welcome the fact that, very late in the day and under duress, the Government has agreed that there is a need for an independent Garda authority.

The critical thing is not the fact that these awful things happened within the Garda and the justice system, but the response of those in authority once they occurred. Public office and government are a test of judgment and character. Judgment comes into this for political leaders when there is a need to recognise that something wrong has happened or been done. Character is required to ensure that our political leaders have the strength to do what is right when they discover wrongdoing. They must do what is right regardless of the implications. Unfortunately, the Government has been found seriously wanting in both judgment and character.

There were serious problems with the manner in which the former Minister, Deputy Alan Shatter, dealt with this entire matter. There was his outrageous allegation against Deputy Wallace and his failure to tackle the disgraceful treatment of Deputy Daly. He undermined the whistleblowers from the very start and resisted any kind of inquiry or attention to those critical voices referred to in the Guerin report. He undermined and denigrated them. He sought to silence them and move on in the pretence that there was no problem. Deputy Shatter claimed the whistleblowers had refused to co-operate with the Garda inquiry, which he knew was absolutely not the case. He refused to disassociate himself from the "disgusting" remark of the former Garda Commissioner, Mr. Callinan. He alleged that GSOC was legally obliged to notify him of the bugging investigation and misquoted the law in that regard. He ignored all the warnings from the RSA, the Comptroller and Auditor General, the confidential recipient, etc.

Worse than that was the manner in which the Taoiseach dealt with this matter. All of those matters were sackable offences, yet the Taoiseach showed no concern about them. He resisted taking any action and stood by the former Minister to the very death and until the position was entirely untenable. What really concerns me is the utter failure of the Taoiseach and his colleagues in Cabinet to stand up and be counted on an issue that everyone else recognised for what it was. The Government refused to do what was right in this situation and has been greatly diminished and weakened as a result. There has been a great deal of consideration of the culture that has been created. The response of the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and other Ministers has only copperfastened that unhealthy culture, which is about ignoring the elephant in the room when something is wrong.

Mr. Brian Purcell, who is currently a witness before the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, is in an impossible position. He is being asked - rightly but impossibly - to disclose a confidential conversation between himself and the Taoiseach which took place before he was dispatched to speak to the former Garda Commissioner.

It is entirely unacceptable that the Taoiseach should hide behind a commission of investigation and refuse to disclose what happened that night. He is playing for time and tried to do that until the elections were out of the way. Now, he is stretching it out as long as possible for one year, 18 months or maybe after the next general election. He is in a position to explain to the public what happened that night and he is seriously failing in his duties by refusing to do so and running away. He is a disgrace.

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