Gerald Nash (Labour) | Oireachtas source

It is clear that we will not be having a commission of investigation into the issues surrounding Sergeant McCabe because there has been a political move towards a full public inquiry or tribunal of investigation. As a result, this week we will not be dealing with the business that was originally slated.The Leader might, at some point in time in the next few days, inform the House what he knows about the ordering of business to provide space to consider the legislation that will be required. All of us in the House support Sergeant Maurice McCabe and his family. He has been treated scandalously by the State and its agencies. The conduct of the Government in recent days has drawn the public's attention to the dysfunctional arrangements made in the administration of the State. It has expedited or shortened the lifetime of the Government because it is very difficult to see how the public can continue to have trust in a Government that has behaved in the way it has in the past few days. We have had several contradictory statements from Ministers and I understand the opportunity has not yet been taken in the Houses to correct the record. The people need to have confidence in the Ministers who are administering the State. Because of the way they have behaved recently that certainly is not the case. It would be useful if the three Ministers in question which include the Taoiseach wee to set the record straight on what they knew and when. Is it the case, in fact, that some people knew an awful lot about this matter and then decided to forget it? In the meantime, Sergeant McCabe and his family should be at the forefront of our concerns. As I said, the Labour Party fully supports the idea of a full public inquiry or tribunal in order that these matters could be aired in public. Given the experience of Sergeant McCabe and the O'Higgins' examination of the issues involved, it is fair to say Sergeant McCabe would not have any confidence in an examination of matters of this importance that would take place behind closed doors. As parliamentarians, we should acknowledge and reflect on the seriousness of a State agency having an open file on allegations of child abuse against an individual, as well as a file on his family, and this information being propagated with impunity by others. I would not be surprised if we were not just dealing with matters before a tribunal of inquiry but also, potentially, looking at a criminal investigation at some point down the line.