Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is a funny thing that when one comes to the House and to the people in this position and actually tells the truth, one gets pilloried also. There are many people who were here before me for many years who made mistakes. I stand here to say that I had spoken to the Minister about the information on her meeting with the McCabe family. She notified my office, which told me of that information. I put that in the public domain and I regret that because I should not have. The Minister did not refer to any of the details of the discussion with the McCabes, the existence of a file in Tusla or the information contained in that file. It is not true to say that I had any information about the existence of that prior to the Cabinet meeting in Government Buildings.

The judge who was appointed to conduct the commission of investigation confirmed that what he saw on the "Prime Time" programme was covered by the existing terms of reference. After Judge O'Neill examined both protected disclosures, he was unable to determine the truth. He set out the terms of reference that Government followed faithfully. That included covering the issue of erroneous sexual allegations against Sergeant McCabe.

I will return to the central point. There is an issue of truth and justice that needs to be determined. It is a very sensitive, serious and public matter now. The way to achieve that is to have the co-operation of everybody in order that this work can be done. There is no point in having some private investigation or commission if the McCabe family is not willing to participate in it. As far as I am concerned, the Government was very anxious to decide in principle to have a tribunal of enquiry under the 1921 Act, to be fair to everybody and draft terms of reference that will allow the tribunal to do its work. I hope that can be concluded within the next 48 and that it can go through both the Dáil and the Seanad in order to let that commission and tribunal of inquiry get on with its work.

The central issue is whether there was or was not a concerted smear campaign by senior gardaí against Sergeant Maurice McCabe.

That is the question which needs to be answered and it is the question I hope the tribunal of inquiry will be able to deal with in everybody's interest.

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