Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as an moladh seo a thabhairt os ár gcomhair. This vacancy arises out of the departure of Mr. Mark Toland from GSOC who gave a number of years of service to GSOC and is now serving with the Garda Inspectorate. I take this opportunity to commend Mr. Toland on his work in that regard.

It is right and proper that there is a procedure of this kind and that this matter comes before both Houses of the Oireachtas before proceeding for appointment by the President, but I echo what Deputy O'Callaghan has said. Greater detail could have been provided in advance of this debate. My office contacted the Minister's office seeking additional detail and some was forthcoming but, nonetheless, it should have been provided as a matter of course. As the Minister said, ideally, we should have had the opportunity to invite Mr. Sullivan to appear before the Oireachtas committee. Notwithstanding that, Sinn Féin will not oppose the motion. It appears that Mr. Sullivan, on the basis of the qualifications and criteria outlined, is very capable. He has considerable experience with various federal agencies across a wide range of areas relating to the law and law enforcement. The most recent position was as an assistant inspector general for investigations in the US Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Inspector General, which required the supervision of criminal and administrative investigative cases. Obviously, he is very senior and experienced and I hope he will be able to bring that to bear with GSOC and add to it.

I ask the Minister to clarify a point. I understand that, presuming he is duly appointed, Mr. Sullivan will commence his role with GSOC on 1 July. After that date, will he retain commitments to any other organisations and if so, what will be the extent of those commitments? It would be in the interest of the House to have that information provided if that is possible.

I echo some of the points made by Deputy O'Callaghan. I count myself among the Members who have had their confidence in GSOC somewhat undermined in recent times. The example has been given, which I will return to, of the report produced in regard to Lucia O'Farrell, the killing of her son Shane and the failures related to that. I have said previously that more appropriate approaches to that could have been taken, given that the failures extended beyond An Garda Síochána, but I will deal with that later. It is not good enough to say that the report took six years to produce. Even if it was produced in a shorter period, it would not be of an acceptable standard. There are numerous examples of that. The assertions of gardaí in the report are not tested but simply accepted. I do not believe that properly constitutes an investigation.

I believe there are wider issues in GSOC. I have put down a series of questions to the Minister. He has answered some of them but not all of those have been answered to my satisfaction. It is clear there are issues with resources and I hope the Minister can address that business case as soon as possible but I believe there is more to it than that.

I am not of the view that cases are being handled or managed in an efficient way. In addition, I am not convinced that GSOC's offices are being managed efficiently. My understanding is that often, even after they are investigated, cases remain with the directorate for far longer than they should before they are escalated to the commission. Obviously, that has implications for the conclusion and publication of reports and for the ability of GSOC to operate effectively.

GSOC has been in existence for more than ten years. Sinn Féin believed it was badly needed long before that. We were anxious to see an ombudsman established in the North and it was an important aspect of the Patten reforms. However, it is in the interests of the Garda and of the public that there is proper oversight. The Garda performs better when there is proper oversight. If GSOC is not functioning to the best of its abilities or to satisfy its duties, that creates problems for the Garda. The Garda will not reach the standards it should if GSOC is not holding it properly to account. I am concerned that GSOC is not doing that currently and is not in a position to do it. There is a role in that regard for the Minister and the chairperson of GSOC, Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring. I hope Mr. Sullivan will be able to contribute to that.

We believe there is a need for greater independence for GSOC and the strengthening of its powers. The Garda Commissioner should be fully within the remit of GSOC for investigative purposes. There should be powers to secure co-operation from gardaí. They must be clarified and bolstered because there are serious blockages to GSOC investigations at present. It is an issue GSOC has identified and it has sought legislative changes. There is also an issue in terms of its independence and serving officers of An Garda Síochána being seconded to GSOC. I understand there are still such instances, such as with regard to the Templemore investigation. It is not right and proper that serving gardaí should be seconded. It is probably not ideal that there would even be former members of An Garda Síochána with GSOC but serving gardaí should certainly not be seconded, particularly to an investigation of that nature. Gardaí should not be investigating fellow gardaí, to allow for a freer and fairer course of justice and to dispel any sense of bias or prejudice.

In a similar vein, a duty of impartiality and independence must be included in GSOC's objectives, along with a statutory obligation to report at regular intervals to the justice committee. Where a garda retires or resigns any complaint against the departing officer should still be potentially investigated by GSOC where there is a public interest in doing so, and the time limit for the making of complaints to GSOC should be extended from six months to at least a year or perhaps longer, with the period running from the date of knowledge of the supposed wrongdoing.

Another issue relates to protected disclosures and the business case in that regard. GSOC was seeking 12 additional staff but has only received five. While I made my point about administration and its management of resources, there is also the reality that the resources it needs for protected disclosures do not exist. The sum involved in this regard is relatively small, approximately €900,000 in that specific case. Given the potential costs of commissions of investigation or tribunals and in light of what GSOC can prevent if a protected disclosure is properly addressed, that is very little. GSOC must also have a broad right to make unannounced visits and inspections. Its access to PULSE should be put on a statutory footing in order to give it access to all the materials it requires, by its own definition, for investigating cases to ensure it investigates them properly and assertively.

There is also a need for a statutory framework to be created for GSOC to provide An Garda Síochána with observations on systemic issues arising from complaints in order that these complaints might be addressed and remedied in an agreed and relatively short timeframe depending on the nature of the issues. There were examples of these failings recently, such as the issues relating to road traffic incidents highlighted in on RTÉ's "Prime Time". In addition to dealing with individual complaints against gardaí, there is a need for GSOC to be able to provide a commentary and analysis of systemic issues that are emerging repeatedly. The commission must have that role. It also must have the scope and ability to engage in joint investigations with other relevant State organisations, where required, because there are organisations that will have expertise where procuring specialist skills for that via the private market would be expensive and inappropriate. GSOC must have that capacity.

GSOC has a long road to travel to be able to carry out its functions properly. It must manage itself better and use its resources better. It also requires additional resources in particular areas and additional powers. It is not in the interest of the public, the Garda or the victims of crime if the Garda is not properly held to account. That will only happen if we have a strong, well organised and well-resourced GSOC.

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