Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The programme "Whistleblower" was broadcast last night on RTÉ television. It illustrated again in some detail the horrific treatment of Maurice McCabe for daring to speak out about Garda malpractice in the Cavan Monaghan division. We are agreed that Maurice is a good and honourable man of incredible strength. He, his wife, Lorraine, and their family deserve not only our support and solidarity but also our gratitude. For daring to speak out and for putting his head above the parapet, Maurice was smeared and bullied by fellow members of An Garda Síochána. He was the subject of the most despicable type of character assassination imaginable. That is a fact. The Charleton tribunal found that Maurice was "repulsively denigrated" for being nothing more than a good citizen and police officer. The tribunal also established that the then Garda Commissioner, Martin Callinan, undertook a most disgraceful attack on Maurice, aided and abetted by his press officer, Dave Taylor.

Against that backdrop, Maurice McCabe is justifiably pursuing legal action against the State and Maurice Callinan. However, it has emerged in recent days that the State will pay Mr. Callinan's legal fees, using taxpayer's money, which is outrageous. Martin Callinan is a man who went around telling people falsely and without foundation that Maurice McCabe was a child sex abuser who should not be trusted.

At the weekend the Taoiseach stated: "As a former State employee who is being sued in the course of his work it is norm for the State to offer representation...". However, I put it to the Taoiseach that this is not a normal case. Mr. Callinan has, of course, every right to defend himself in court but in this case, which is being taken by the person he repulsively denigrated, he should not get one red cent of State money. Setting out to destroy Maurice McCabe was his doing and he should face the consequences of his actions. The reputation of An Garda Síochána, as we all know, was deeply damaged by this episode. For the State to now come to Mr. Callinan's aid by way of providing for his legal fees is simply not acceptable.

The decision taken by the acting Commissioner, Mr. Ó Cualáin, to recommend, under the Garda Síochána Act, that a defence be funded by the State was a decision taken before the tribunal had concluded and before it had found so heavily against Martin Callinan.

The State has already failed Maurice McCabe on numerous occasions and now it looks set to support the individual who went to extraordinary lengths to destroy his character. I want the Taoiseach to state categorically here this afternoon that this will not be the case. I want him to ensure that Mr. Callinan funds his own legal defence.

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