Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am coming to the subject matter now. It is about how important Deputy Howlin felt the subject matter was and how he could not wait for today. This was scheduled for today by the Business Committee and he knew that from his own representative. Is mór an trua that he did not have the patience to wait for it.

I welcome the commission. It is very important that any wrongdoing is addressed. I have met Garda Wilson and Sergeant McCabe and I know David Taylor and his family, who are a decent family from Tipperary. They are entitled to their good names. A good name is all one is entitled to in this country and one must be allowed to retain it. Privilege or no privilege does not give anyone the right to attack or undermine that. The facts must always be to the fore.

An Garda Síochána does not need this. We see the highly visible members out there in the fight against crime to save our community in Tipperary. They are making a difference and, with the Tánaiste, the Department and An Garda Síochána, grappling with the serious issue of all sorts of crime, including marauding gangs going around attacking them. The first person in all of this is the garda so we need to have the matter cleared up. If the Commissioner is found to have acted wrongly, she will have to pay the price, but I do not like to see two Commissioners being forced out of office. It does not send a good message to the House, the public or to those looking in at us from abroad. While I know the Minister looked abroad in the appointment of the previous Commissioner, it might be best on a future occasion to insist that someone from abroad is appointed to take over. In fairness to the superintendents, inspectors and ordinary gardaí I deal with, including Chief Superintendent Catherine Kehoe in Tipperary and her teams, they do a tremendous job. I have had issues with what went on in a different jurisdiction in Dungarvan this week. I also have issues where I myself was blackguarded and only five of 13 statements were sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, while seven were never sent. There were no questions or answers. This only happened in the middle of my own trial. We cannot have that carry on. There must be total transparency.

I supported the Minister's bail initiative here last night and said that I was very concerned about legal aid. For the public to continue to support An Garda Síochána, this must be cleared up. I hope the judge will get to the end of it. It has been dragging on. If there is wrongdoing, it must be rooted out. Above all other organisations across the State, An Garda Síochána is the one we depend on every night when we are in our beds and its members are minding the house. Reference was made earlier to the fact that gardaí threatened to go on strike. It had never happened in the history of the State. As such, I am glad the Tánaiste and gardaí were able to come to accommodation and avoid that because people were frightened. People watching this today and hearing the attacks know they depend on their local gardaí. One cannot beat the garda on the beat, the local man or woman. He or she has to be supported.

We must get to the bottom of this. I hope it will not be a long process and that the eminent judge will get all the information without any difficulty or blockage, including the phone and e-mail information alleged to have been there. I hope none of that will be missing. We have to have that to have confidence. I support the commission of investigation. I have read the terms of reference which could probably be a bit different. No matter what terms of reference one comes up with, however, someone will challenge them.

As I said, we must have faith in An Garda Síochána and the confidence they are out there to serve us, including even the lads outside the gates of Leinster House. My colleague, Deputy Michael Collins, lost his telephone last night and will be forever grateful to An Garda Síochána. He just said it to the gardaí outside and they acted swiftly, above and beyond the call of duty, and Deputy Collins and his phone were reunited this morning. We all know how much information is on our smartphones. There are thousands of simple incidents like that day and night which are dealt with by gardaí in the countryside and urban areas. They also work abroad on service with the United Nations and Interpol and they are tackling the huge issue of gun crime in this city. We do not need any distractions from that.

We need a swift, accurate and in-depth investigation, a concise report and swift action by Government on the recommendations. We must move on from this. Whoever the cap fits must wear it, whether he or she is male or female. It might be a hat or scarf on the female, but she will have to wear it. That is an old saying too. We want to get to the bottom of this. The public and An Garda Síochána deserve no less and, indeed, the whistleblowers and their families are entitled to have their good names cleared. On the other hand, if there is wrongdoing, there must be punishment and retribution. I rest my case there.

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