Kathleen O'Meara (Labour)

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this important motion. When the second Morris tribunal report was published last week, the public was deeply shocked when it was realised what had been going on in Donegal. We cannot underestimate public concern around the implications for the Garda force of what has been revealed to have happened in Donegal.

As enunciated in the House during this debate, many feel that in some way the case of Donegal was an isolated incident, or that it happened up there but is not happening anywhere else. There is a sense that a small number of gardaí have sullied the whole force, which is the case. The concern and public dissatisfaction with the fact that three gardaí have been transferred to Dublin clearly indicates that what is needed to re-establish public confidence in the Garda is an intense clean-up job.

My major concern is that the activities of a minority in the Garda are creating a situation where public confidence in all gardaí is diminished. As the activities of a small number of politicians diminished us all and impacted on the whole political system, in the same way, the activities of a small number of gardaí have impacted on the whole Garda force.

I add my voice to the many Members who spoke of the fine work done by the majority of gardaí, including community work. However, the fact remains that the whole force is now damaged and sullied. It is our responsibility as Members of the Oireachtas to ensure public confidence is restored because it is too important not to have that happen. If we do not do so, confidence in the Garda will continue to be undermined. Moreover, other incidents also need to be cleared up, such as the Dean Lyons case.

The structures put in place to deal with this question are very important. At their heart must be the establishment of a system of accountability for the Garda Síochána. In the same way we have established accountability for politics and political representatives, and in doing so taken steps, I hope, to restore public confidence in politics. We must work to restore public confidence through establishing clear lines of accountability for the Garda.

The power we give the Garda Síochána has up to recently been unquestioned because it has not been abused. However, when that power is abused, the systems of accountability must be there and must kick into place. They are simply not there at present. While attempts have been made in the Garda Síochána Bill to address this issue, they do not go far enough. The question marks that have been raised about the three-person commission need to be addressed by the Minister because there is a question mark in the public mind that the Bill does not go far enough. The Garda Complaints Board must be reformed because there is no public confidence in it. Today's newspapers report that the culture of silence, known internationally as the "blue wall", is very much evident in our police force. This cannot be acceptable to us as public representatives.

We must put measures in place to ensure that this ends. The role of the Minister is critical in this regard because he is the key person involved. He must establish the importance of accountability. It is the responsibility of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to ensure that we hear and meet the public demand for the highest standards of ethical conduct by the Garda Síochána to re-establish confidence in the force as a public service first and foremost, and we must support him in that regard. Clearly that is not happening and it will take time. I ask for support for the motion.