Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

I have not followed all of this as keenly as some Deputies, notably Deputies Daly and Wallace, who have done the State a great service in how they pursued the matter regarding Sergeant Maurice McCabe and whistleblowers generally and serious problems within the Garda, both in terms of how they conduct or fail to conduct proper policing and in how they deal with whistleblowers. However, the statement today by Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan and the response of the Minister to the events surrounding the O'Higgins report are not satisfactory at all.

There is a glaring contradiction between Commissioner O'Sullivan's statement today to the effect that there was no attempt to impugn the integrity or credibility of Sergeant Maurice McCabe and the leaked transcript of what the senior counsel for the Commissioner, Colm Smyth, said to the judge. As Deputy Barry has already said, when questioned by Mr. Justice O'Higgins, Colm Smyth repeatedly indicated that he had got instructions about challenging the credibility and integrity of Sergeant Maurice McCabe. There is a glaring contradiction there. That also raises very serious questions over the commitments and assurances that Commissioner O'Sullivan is giving in the same statement about a new regime when it comes to dealing with whistleblowers. The O'Higgins report clearly vindicates Sergeant Maurice McCabe and indicates what tremendous service he did the State and the public in blowing the whistle on serious failings in the Garda in Cavan-Monaghan. Mr. Justice O'Higgins at least acknowledges that "there was a corporate closing of ranks" by the Garda in the face of the whistleblowing efforts of Sergeant Maurice McCabe, although frankly I think that is an understatement of what Sergeant Maurice McCabe was put through.

We all hoped and imagined that with the ascension of the Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan, and after all the controversy surrounding the stepping down of the former Garda Commissioner, Mr. Martin Callinan, and the former Minister for Justice and Equality, Mr. Alan Shatter, we might have a new regime to deal with things in a different way. Instead it appears that the new Garda Commissioner is carrying on in precisely the same way as the old regime carried on in failing to deal in a proper way with whistleblowers to give them the proper protection and support they deserve for highlighting problems, failings and shortcomings within An Garda Síochána. It would appear that two gardaí were preparing to perjure themselves by giving evidence to the O'Higgins investigation by saying that Sergeant Maurice McCabe had indicated malice in his allegations against gardaí in the area. They were unable to do that because, thankfully, Sergeant McCabe had recorded the conversation and showed there was no such malice demonstrated. The fact that two gardaí were willing to perjure themselves, the effect of which would have been to undermine and malign the credibility and integrity of Sergeant Maurice McCabe, is incredibly serious.

Only now, after all the furore, complaints and protests about it, we hear that Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan is going to refer this to GSOC. However, that does not satisfy me at all. When will GSOC report on the issue and has its record on these matter been such that one would have confidence that it would get to the bottom of what is an incredibly serious issue? It would appear that two gardaí were prepared to tell lies to Mr. Justice O'Higgins to malign Sergeant Maurice McCabe. The O'Higgins report clearly indicates that Sergeant McCabe had performed a genuine public service at considerable personal cost and had acted out of genuine and legitimate concerns. The response to this is gardaí who were planning to perjure themselves and lie about Sergeant McCabe's integrity. Luckily, they were caught out because of Sergeant McCabe's forethought.

One could say that all of this is past history but there is still a glaring contradiction between what the Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan is saying and what appears to be the case. These events might be considered in the past but the same thing seems to be happening again with other whistleblowers. I have not had as much contact with whistleblowers as have Deputies Daly and Wallace but earlier this week I had an extended conversation with Garda Keith Harrison. Before attending the Chamber now, I spoke with him about his thoughts on what was being said. It indicates that nothing at all has changed. Here is another garda with a very serious story, which I will recount. Garda Harrison arrested a senior garda on suspicion of drink driving, which he pursued following the arrest. He was faced with obstacles and resistance by senior Garda management in Donegal. Garda Harrison then started to experience bullying, harassment and victimisation by senior management in the Donegal area, gardaí who were actually supposed to be pursuing the person who was arrested and to serve justice on the senior garda against whom other very serious allegations were also being made by Garda Keith Harrison. Garda Harrison told me that he went to the confidential recipient, a commission of investigation was set up and information from the affidavits he gave to that investigation team were then leaked to the people against whom he had made allegations. This is very serious.

Garda Keith Harrison has written on four occasions to Commissioner O'Sullivan and has received nothing but perfunctory acknowledgements with no serious follow-through, no protection, and no support. I understand that he wrote to the Minister for Justice and Equality in December, and has written to her again this week. He has received from her only a perfunctory acknowledgement of his December correspondence with no real response to the contents of his letter, an account of his treatment when he tried to blow the whistle on very serious failings in the Garda in Donegal.

Garda Harrison tells me that Garda cars drive past his home on a regular basis in what appears to be some sort of low-level intimidation of him and his family. He has been on sick leave since May 2014 and from this week he has no income whatsoever. He has had no support from the Garda, financially or in any other regard. He is getting no support from the Minister or from Commissioner Noírín O'Sullivan. Despite the very serious allegations he has made, despite everything that has happened and despite the vindication of Sergeant Maurice McCabe and Deputies Daly and Wallace - who have championed these issues and the cause of the whistleblowers - nothing seems to be changing. All we get today is another statement that appears to be the Commissioner trying to cover her tracks. It appeared that finally something was going to be done but the evidence suggests that right up until recently they were in fact trying to undermine Sergeant Maurice McCabe, and we have that on the word of their own legal counsel. Consider also the treatment of whistleblowers such as Garda Nicky Keogh. I do not know much about the Garda Nicky Keogh case but apparently it covers very similar concerns.

Given what has happened, how she treated - or tended to treat - Sergeant Maurice McCabe in order to undermine his integrity and in her compete failure to respond to, support and protect whistleblowers such as Garda Keith Harrison, it would appear that Commissioner O'Sullivan simply has no credibility. The Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality knows all of this and I do not understand what she is doing and why she is allowing this to stand. I would hope to hear from the Minister that she is not satisfied with the Garda Commissioner's explanations. It would be good to hear an explanation as to what the Minster intends to do to protect whistleblowers like Garda Keith Harrison and others. Simple rhetoric about protecting whistleblowers that in reality is not matched with visible change, and other Sergeant Maurice McCabes are coming forward, suggests that at best the Government is just playing politics with this issue. The Government was just playing politics when former Commissioner Martin Callinan and former Minister Alan Shatter stepped down. In fact, the Government appears to be doing what the senior gardaí hierarchy seems to be engaged in - the closing of ranks and self-protection, with no serious effort to bring about the needed reform and not following through on its commitment to protect and support whistleblowers.

I do not think any of the serious questions that have been raised regarding Sergeant Maurice McCabe or the whistleblowers have been answered, and a very radical change in attitude is necessary from the Government if it is to regain any credibility on these matters.

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