Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Last year they gave it a new name, "new politics", in the centenary year of 1916. However, this new politics represents the type of politics that is prepared to accept an alleged criminal conspiracy by senior gardaí to destroy the character of a decent man doing his duty, and expects the Government that allowed this to happen to remain in office. In their world, political power is not a means to an end, it is an end in itself. That is the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil way, but as Martin McGuinness has shown it is not the Sinn Féin way. No wonder the Taoiseach and the Fianna Fáil leader protest at Martin's decisive leadership.

Maurice McCabe is a man who deserves the thanks of the people of this State. He is a man of incredible strength. He and his wife, Lorraine, and their family deserve our support and solidarity. Their resilience and commitment to each other has been extraordinary. The twists, turns, lies, spin and the contradictory claims of the Taoiseach and his Ministers in recent days have heightened public outrage. Citizens do not have confidence in this Government. The Tánaiste was first up last Thursday to deny any knowledge of contact between the gardaí and other State agencies regarding Sergeant Maurice McCabe. Her position was contradicted both by the Minister, Deputy Zappone, and then by Teachta Jim O'Callaghan, who said they had informed her of the Tusla links. She reiterated her position on Sunday when she said she had no advance knowledge of the Tusla allegations against Maurice McCabe. She has maintained that position since. An Teachta O'Callaghan has maintained his position, so we have a senior Fianna Fáil Deputy essentially calling the Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, a liar over a very serious issue, yet Fianna Fáil is not prepared to do anything about this.

The Taoiseach too has failed to clarify when and how he became aware of all this. He refused again this morning. Having previously denied it, he now admits that the Minister, Deputy Zappone, told him that false accusations made against Maurice McCabe were referred to Tusla. He says he assured her that all this would be covered by the terms of the then proposed commission of investigation, but unless the Taoiseach has seen these disclosures he had no way of knowing that false accusations brought to him by the Minister, Deputy Zappone, were the false accusations contained in the protected disclosure. He has yet to explain that, so both his position and that of the Tánaiste are not creditable.

Maurice McCabe's appalling treatment illustrates the absolute need for a culture of openness, transparency and accountability within our policing, justice and political systems. In the midst of numerous controversies, Sinn Féin has consistently called for a new dispensation, for the establishment of an independent policing board similar to that established by the Patten Commission in the North. Under this process the gardaí would have been accountable to an independent policing authority with full powers to hold them to account. The Government rejected this again and again. There is a Policing Authority but the most senior garda, the Commissioner, remains accountable to the Minister for Justice and Equality. No police service, senior police officer or Garda Commissioner should be solely accountable to any one politician no matter who he or she is. Therefore, real change has not happened - not of the quality and depth that modern policing and citizens deserve.

Remember the story about someone saying, "Give me another pint guard, or go to Achill Island". Those days are over. People expect more, but this Government is not capable of delivering a new beginning to policing or delivering for ordinary citizens. Our health service is creaking under the pressure of cuts and lack of investment. Record levels of patients are on hospital trolleys. Children with scoliosis are left in pain for months, sometimes for years, awaiting treatment. Tens of thousands of patients languish on unacceptable waiting lists. Front-line staff are left to manage a broken system without necessary resources. It is clear that this Government is not capable of fixing the problems in health care.

What of the housing emergency? For decades Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael abandoned the construction of social housing. They surrendered that to the private sector. They have driven up the price of rents and left tens of thousands of people, including families, without a home. Homelessness is now at record levels. Citizens cannot afford runaway rent increases, yet the State continues to abrogate its responsibility. In this Dáil Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil have co-operated to stop all attempts to bring about rent certainty and proposals to build more social housing. The Government also refuses to adopt a position of seeking a special position for the island or the North within the EU in the aftermath of Brexit.

This is a Government which has undermined confidence in itself. Everything that is wrong is its own fault. It is all self-inflicted. The Government's policy, under the banner of "keep the recovery going", is to cut taxes for highest earners, continue to starve our health services, cut capital gains tax, ignore the housing emergency, protect elites and vested interests, and cherish all the bankers of the nation equally. The policy is to tolerate a crisis in public services, and that means protecting their wealthy friends.

Last year we celebrated the centenary of the 1916 Rising. Perhaps Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil Deputies will reflect on what that was all about. There are very decent people here. I have never tried to take away the character of one person here. What was 1916 all about? Perhaps they will also reflect on how they have advanced on the Proclamation and its principles in the time that their parties have dominated politics here since partition.

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