Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. While it is taking time, we are beginning to learn timelines and who said what to whom. I disagree with my colleague, Senator Noone. We need to know who said what, when and how. People need to be accountable and to not hide behind the assertion that one should bury it now and get on with the inquiry.

I believe the Minister is winning the moral ground and the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste are lagging significantly behind in that. What has occurred in the past week or so is insupportable. Primarily, it has affected the McCabes but there are other whistleblowers coming out and there will be others in the future. It is insupportable for us and we are charged with upholding the democracy of this country. It will be the scandal of our time. I do not know how more scandalous it can be. If, as Senator Craughwell says, Members were aware of it, I certainly am a bit naive and was not aware of it. Perhaps that is naivety; I am not sure.

I have a few questions. I note the Minister has gone to the Health Information and Quality Authority, HIQA, for the investigations. While that is the correct option to take, how could a file on alleged child abuse exist and not be picked up for several years? It was sitting there and was not picked up. It is clear that normal procedures were not followed and that raises the question of handling in its entirety the child protection issues that Tusla comes across on a systematic basis. People with whom my party's councillors have been involved ask whether this child abuse can really be true or real, whether it was imagined or whether Tusla was trying to get at people and now one thinks perhaps that is the case. Perhaps there is a vindictiveness or whatever there. It is political, in this sense, for Sergeant McCabe.

The copy and paste error would be laughable if it was not so serious. It is unbelievable and complete and utter balderdash and we need to find out how that occurred. How Tusla could think it could get away with that excuse is pathetic. Anybody knows copying and pasting will not cut it in these circumstances.

There are questions for HIQA. As a member of the Joint Committee on Children and Youth Affairs, I will have more time next week to put more pertinent questions to the authority.

I have questions for the Minister. On the timeline, when did the Minister inform the Taoiseach about the false allegations of sexual abuse by Sergeant McCabe? Was it two days before the "Prime Time" programme? I am still not clear on that. Could the Minister give an exact date? What did they discuss? Is the Minister 100% certain that the Taoiseach heard the words "false allegations of sexual abuse" from Tusla? Third, does the Minister believe that the Taoiseach is being economical with the truth, to use a euphemism? The people on the streets would say, "Redact, redact, pants on fire" - something that rhymes with "fire".