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

In regard to the code of ethics, the point is that it being a breach of discipline was in the heads of the Bill. It has been watered down and removed from the final draft. The Minister also mentioned the importance of monitoring but the word is mentioned only once in regard to the role of the authority. It has been removed from what was in the heads of Bill to a much looser oversight role, which is again a watering down. She can say there is human rights compliance in a pledge, but where is it in reality? Where were the human rights of Keith Harrison, a member of the Garda? Senior management pressurised his girlfriend into making a compliant against him. He had to go to the High Court to stop an action against him. The Garda representatives frustrated that action and the State ended up paying the costs of the case. Who will be held to account for the breach of human rights of that whistleblower?

The Minister has staunchly defended time and again the force when the Garda Inspectorate is on record as saying there are serious problems. She said the force is acting on the recommendations of the previous report but the inspectorate says the opposite. The information we are talking about in the Athlone district and the continued massaging of the crime figures is fact. I do not know why she is surprised by the information given by Deputy Mac Lochlainn because it fits in with what the Garda Inspectorate said about a systemic problem at the top of An Garda Síochána. I might not generally be a fan of the GRA or the AGSI but, this time around, the inspectorate complimented them for highlighting the problems at the top of the organisation. How can the Minister reform an organisation if she keeps the people at the top who were at the top when the problems emerged? The systemic problem remains and they are not being addressed. She is not giving the authority the power it needs to grapple with it.

Deputy Wallace made a number of points about the Government hiding behind the Constitution yet again, which is a little nauseating. We need answers to those serious questions that were raised about the Attorney's General role and her advice. Can we see the advice? If it was that black and white, why did the Government not change the Constitution in this regard when it had the opportunity with all the other referendums? The idea of an independent Garda authority is a little more important than the age to run in a presidential election and so on.

These are very serious issues and every time we raise them here, new information comes out. I am shocked that the Minister is not willing to say on record now that it is a disgrace that it was not until Deputy Wallace went on record in the House that the Garda authorities handed over the files on the case of Keith Harrison to GSOC. That is what happened. We are dealing with a force which is undisciplined at the top and this Bill will not equip an authority to deal with it properly.

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