Thomas Pringle (Donegal South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The motion is about the Fennelly report. The Minister for Education and Skills has just said the debate should be about values and competence. The debate certainly is about values and competence. It is about the Taoiseach's values and how he dealt with the Garda Commissioner when the information came to light, and about how he did not use the proper channels to convey his message to the Garda Commissioner. He sent a late night visit to the Commissioner from the Secretary General of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, and to quote a famous film, he "made him an offer he couldn't refuse". He was left with no choice as to what he had to do. While the Taoiseach might not have said, "I want you to resign", he certainly left the Commissioner knowing what he had to do, and that is what the Commissioner did.

In his earlier contribution, the Taoiseach said had he seen the letter that was in the Department of Justice and Equality for a number of weeks before the information came to light, things would have been different. However, are we seriously to believe that the Secretary General whom he sent to deliver the message to the Commissioner had not seen the letter and did not know about it? Did he not mention it to the Taoiseach at any stage during the debacle? It stretches credulity to believe it would have happened. The Taoiseach delivered a message that he wanted the Commissioner to resign, and the Commissioner took the message on board, although it was not laid out in black and white for him.

There are many reasons to have a motion of no confidence in the Government, and they have been highlighted over recent years. The Taoiseach went to Switzerland and told our European masters we had all "partied", while here in the House he said we were not responsible for the crisis. The Taoiseach said he had not increased taxes during the lifetime of the Government when, clearly, everybody here knows he did. Last week, we had the spectacle of the Tánaiste opening a food bank in the city, which shows the culture and competence of the Government, given that opening a food bank in our capital city could be seen as progress.

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