Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the terms of reference. I want to put on the record the fact that I appreciate the Tánaiste's decision to include the other whistleblowers, which I have been calling for for a long time.

The terms of reference refer to "any other matters that the tribunal considers should be drawn to the attention of the Houses of the Oireachtas at the time of the report." I feel, and maybe the Tánaiste has allowed for that, that Judge Charleton should be given the authority to make some policy recommendations around areas such as how we deal with whistleblowers, the gardaí-media relationship, the need for cultural change and legislative policy change. When he assesses everything before him, I imagine Judge Charleton will have interesting things to say about legislative policy.

I argued with Deputy O'Callaghan last night on a few of these issues. I think that policing should be de-politicised. Some people think the argument for allowing a body like a policing board to have such influence over the Commissioner is dangerous, but I do not. I remind people that I recommended the inclusion of elected representatives on a policing board in a Bill back in 2013 and 2014. I recommended two Government and two Opposition representatives on the panel.

I am not so sure that the notion of a sitting Commissioner going before a judge in public will be in the best interests of An Garda Síochána. The Tánaiste knows very well that I think it would be in the best interests of An Garda Síochána if the Commissioner was removed from her office. As I have pointed out before, section 11(1)(c) of the Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2015 states: "the removal of the person from office would, in the opinion of the Government, be in the best interests of the Garda Síochána." If it was not in the best interests before now, with the public inquiry going on, it will be even more so. It is very important that the Tánaiste should think again about whether the Commissioner is left in place because I do not think she is fit for office.

Senior garda indiscipline is not within the remit of the policing authority and I think this is a mistake. The Guerin report and the Garda Inspectorate have called for the need to address how garda indiscipline is dealt with. Putting this under the Policing Authority makes perfect sense.

Lastly, I touch on a point raised by Deputy O'Callaghan on politicising offices. He made the point that for elected politicians to call for the head of the Garda Commissioner is politicising it. I argue that having the ability to remove the Commissioner solely within the hands of the Minister of the day is an even greater degree of politicisation. If we are going to establish public trust in An Garda Síochána, removing the Commissioner would be a wonderful start.

Hopefully, change is coming. I hope the Minister can bring it about and implement it. We need a new Commissioner from outside the jurisdiction and a change of the Garda hierarchy. A number of members will be standing down soon anyway and a facility of financial inducement should be put in place to encourage others to go. We need a clean sweep and different people dictating how we do policing. God knows there are a lot of really good gardaí in this country who have not got the chance they deserve to influence how we do policing. Too often, the wrong people have been promoted and that needs to change. I thank the Minister for her work this week. Most of us agree that Mr. Justice Charleton is an excellent choice. I am optimistic that he will do a good job.

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