Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Last week, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, or GSOC, stated that its investigation into an alleged leak from its offices, which gave rise to substantial controversy earlier this year, was unsuccessful and that its report on the investigation will not be published. From the start of this affair, GSOC has sought to cover up and keep secret a disturbing level of incompetence and failure to comply with its statutory obligations. This is unacceptable. It is contrary to the public interest that the current GSOC commissioners remain in place and that these matters are left unresolved, particularly in light of new and additional GSOC powers proposed in forthcoming legislation.

In October 2013, GSOC commenced what the Cooke report clearly regarded as a premature public interest investigation into alleged surveillance of its offices. Under section 103 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005, GSOC commissioners had a statutory obligation to inform me, as the then Minister for Justice and Equality, and the then Garda Commissioner of the investigation. They did neither. On 25 November 2013, the chairman of GSOC, Simon O'Brien, and the commissioner Kieran FitzGerald were briefed by their investigators that there had been no "positive result" to the investigation. The chairman is recorded in the Cooke report at page 26 as making a note in his personal log:

This investigation is now closed. I need to think about reporting. This will be difficult, we have found nothing.

In December, GSOC formally closed the investigation and, again, did not inform me as Minister or the then Garda Commissioner. Since the publication of the Cooke report there can be no dispute that it was under a statutory obligation to do so.

On 9 February 2014, as a result of a leak of confidential GSOC information, The Sunday Timespublished an article relating to the investigation. The following day, I met with Simon O'Brien, who verbally briefed me on the matter. Later that day, he furnished me with a written version of the briefing, which formed the basis of my statement to the Dáil on 11 February last. Commissioner Kieran FitzGerald confirmed that night on "Prime Time" the accuracy of what I told the Dáil. However, when appearing before the relevant joint Oireachtas committee, the commissioners proved incapable of detailing what occurred in a coherent manner and their confused narrative and vague innuendo laid the foundations for accusations subsequently made that I had misled the Dáil and weeks of unnecessary controversy. Inexplicably, GSOC commissioners took no steps to clearly set out the facts and facilitated the continuation of the controversy. Even more seriously, at the time of Mr. Simon O'Brien's meeting with me, in the written report I received from GSOC and in the presentation to the joint Oireachtas committee, the representatives of GSOC covered up the fact that they knew that a device about which they expressed concern was known by November 2013 to be randomly attempting to connect to a Bitbuzz Wi-Fi system in an Insomnia coffee shop located in the ground floor of GSOC's building, and posed no risk of surveillance.

On a radio broadcast subsequent to publication of the Cooke report, Mr. Simon O'Brien was asked why GSOC had failed to comply with its statutory obligation to inform me as Minister of its public interest investigation. He stated that "events overtook" them. This reference to the publication of The Sunday Timesarticle in February as the reason for GSOC's failure is disingenuous and not credible. It is clear from Mr. Simon O'Brien's log, as detailed in the Cooke report, that he was well aware of his reporting obligations on 25 November and, I believe, from the commencement of the public interest investigation he knew of GSOC's statutory obligations.

Most recently, GSOC has failed to successfully investigate the alleged leak which led to The Sunday Timesreport and, in refusing to publish the report of the investigation into the leak, clearly intends to conceal its content. I repeat what Judge Cooke stated in page 51 of his report, that the information revealed in The Sunday Timesarticle is "evidence of a serious breach of security". The Cooke report has essentially confirmed that what I informed this House about these matters was true by finding that "it is clear that the evidence does not support the proposition that actual surveillance of the kind asserted in The Sunday Timesarticle took place and much less that it was carried out by members of the Garda Síochána". It is also important to note that Judge Cooke found The Sunday Timesarticle to be "seriously inaccurate".

When it is alleged that members of An Garda Síochána fail to comply with their statutory obligations and rules and regulations, it falls to GSOC to investigate. To do so with credibility, GSOC must be above reproach. It clearly is not and I believe it is no longer acceptable that the failings of GSOC and, in particular, the GSOC commissioners be ignored.

See this speech in context