Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left) | Oireachtas source

This amendment clearly attempts to get to the heart of who is allowed to carry out investigations against the backdrop of a scenario where GSOC is incredibly stretched and under-resourced. For example, I have a complaint with GSOC which is now two years old. It is hardly a rocket-science or complex case. It involves the criminal activity of gardaí leaking information to the media and some other incidents. It has been going on for two years, however. If it takes that long to investigate a case like that and tie up resources in that way, it gives an indication of the difficulty with which GSOC is working.

The Bill’s weakness is that it does not get to the heart of some of the difficulties that have emerged for the hundreds of citizens who have had the experience of going to GSOC. One of the most repeated complaints is precisely the fact that somebody goes to GSOC with a complaint about a garda and then other gardaí investigate that complaint. The Bill does not prohibit the involvement of serving gardaí in GSOC investigations or a referral by GSOC to the Garda to investigate a complaint. The Deputy’s amendment is trying to get around this.

I had a case this week of a peace activist in Galway who had put in a complaint to GSOC about an alleged assault carried out on him at a peace protest. GSOC investigators referred his complaint to a superintendent in Galway who himself had been at the receiving end of a similar allegation, namely that he had carried out an assault on peace activists previously. It was a ridiculous scenario with gardaí investigating an alleged crime for which they had also been investigated. Is it any wonder that citizens do not have confidence in GSOC?

When the citizen in question complained and kicked up - they had to kick up a fair bit - GSOC got another garda from the same station. At this point, the citizen said GSOC was not getting the message about gardaí investigating themselves. Unfortunately, the Bill as constituted still allows this to happen.

One key reason for this is the lack of resources for GSOC. It is understaffed while investigations take far too long because gardaí do not adhere to protocols or have been tardy in getting information to the commission. This is regrettable. It is good to have ex-gardaí and ex-police officers involved in GSOC because they know the score. However, there is a difficulty with that, particularly in a small country like Ireland where everybody knows everyone else. The Bill should contain a provision for a mandatory involvement of GSOC in investigations. No investigation should be left to the gardaí to investigate. If we need outside investigators to assist in this, then so be it. The other idea of the secondment of serving gardaí to GSOC to act in an investigative capacity raises similar concerns that need to be addressed.

I accept there could be difficulties with the nature of outside investigators and so on. Probably a better way would be to change the legislation to ensure no gardaí investigate complaints against themselves and that GSOC should be mandatorily involved in all investigations. I appreciate the intention of the Deputy’s amendment.

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