Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

There is no "if" about whether they followed proper procedure. The Garda internal audit has established that they did not. This is not something that happened overnight. The 2015 accounts for An Garda Síochána state 73 contracts breached public procurement guidelines. This issue was raised at the Committee of Public Accounts by Deputy Catherine Connolly in July 2017 and the director of finance for the Garda, Mr. Michael Culhane, replied: "I accept that the 73 number is high, but we are actively addressing all of those issues and working with the Office of Government Procurement." Let us fast forward to the 2016 Garda accounts which were released in September 2017, according to which 94 contracts breached public procurement guidelines. Things had got worse, not better. What is going on? What is the Office of Government Procurement doing when the director of finance for the Garda says the force is working with that office? What does that mean? These are questions that need to be answered. How can one company be treated so differently? Who has benefited and who was pulling the strings? Does the Government have the appetite to hold the decision makers to account?

Raising issues about the dysfunctional nature of An Garda Síochána has become a little like shooting fish a barrel. There was a time when it was sacrosanct here not to challenge it and we were ridiculed for doing so. Now it has become a popular sport. Will the Taoiseach tell us when will all of this change? There are so many aspects of An Garda Síochána that remain dysfunctional. Will he change things? How and when will the Government do so?

See this speech in context