Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Deputy O'Brien said the motion does not mandate the Government to do anything, but certainly the impression that Sinn Féin seeks to present to the general public is that this is possible. It is not possible. Our motion calls for a range of actions to be taken and also notes the severe lack of confidence and problems within the force at the moment. The Commissioner and senior management of An Garda Síochána would do very well to listen to the views of this party in the Dáil, as a serious party which has supported the force through thick and thin. For us to say the things we said in that motion was an exceptionally big step for this party to take. We have not done this before. We have not gone as far as we have gone in this motion, but that shows the gravity of what is going on with An Garda Síochána. We are supporters of An Garda Síochána. In my own neck of the woods, we have had two members of An Garda Síochána murdered in cold blood in recent years, not to mention all the other heroes since the force was established. There are gardaí doing their job throughout the country.

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They deserve our support. An Garda Síochána as an institution deserves our support. We must challenge its leadership to get on with the job, get their act together and get it done properly.

We need to know our role in this Dáil and be jealous of our prerogatives. If the Government is not doing its job in this regard and if the Tánaiste is not answering questions, then she will be gone. We can do that without stated reasons. However, we cannot do so to a Commissioner.

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