Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It took Superintendent Geary from Ennis around 70 years to get justice from An Garda Síochána. Like my colleague, Senator Robbie Gallagher, I compliment the gardaí, sergeants, inspectors and superintendents who will go to work tonight and have no guarantee that they will come home and who have served the country with distinction. I send a message from this Chamber that not everything is rotten. I also compliment the Minister. Her presence shows her commitment to dealing with this issue. She has had a long day and, God knows, a long week, but the terms of reference she has delivered are perfect, on which I compliment her.

Mr. Justice Charleton who has been picked to chair the tribunal is the ideal man to do so, as my colleague, Senator Michael McDowell, said. As Senator Colm Burke said a few minutes ago, I sincerely hope Mr. Justice Charleton will not be impeded at every turn by people running off to the High Court to seek judicial reviews of this, that and the other. I also hope he will be provided with all of the information Mr. Justice O'Higgins had without any difficulty because that will shorten the time taken to deal with these matters. God knows, the McCabe name has been dragged through every newspaper and this House for I do not know how long. I sincerely hope those who have information and are now coming forward to say they knew this, that and the other - this includes Members of the Oireachtas, journalists and anybody else who claims to have known something about the McCabe incident - will make themselves known to Mr. Justice Charleton in order that the full story can come out. This is no time for shrinking violets and casting stones at anybody. Everybody here wants this issue to be resolved. Being quite honest, watching what has happened and some of the politics in the past few days have made me sick. I do not believe anybody wants this to be dragged out any longer than is necessary.

There may be a need for an external criminal investigation. I hope the Minister's Department is looking towards having an international criminal investigator ready in the event that a criminal investigation will follow. I believe we have one, but that is another day's work. The presumption of innocence is the bedrock of the entire justice system. However, I am telling the Minister that we cannot have the most senior garda in the country, the custodian of all the data that may be called on in the tribunal of inquiry, sitting in uniform on one side of the tribunal, while another senior garda is sitting on the other side pointing the finger of accusation at that person. We cannot have that person sitting on one side of a tribunal, while one of her subordinates sitting on the other side has been dragged through the gutter. From what we can see, there is more than one such person. I believe the presumption of innocence stands, but ethics requires a neutral stance on the part of the Commissioner. For this reason alone, I ask the Commissioner to step aside. When the tribunal is over and she has been cleared - if she is - she may retake her post and do so with honour. If she is not cleared, what happens to her will be a matter for the Minister.

I agree with my colleague, Senator Robbie Gallagher, that when this process starts and we finish in the House tonight, we need to step away from the issue and allow Mr. Justice Charleton the freedom to carry out his tribunal of inquiry. The only people who should speak again about the matter until Mr. Justice Charleton's report is on the Minister's desk are those who will speak before Mr. Justice Charleton and have something to offer. We should not try to run two inquiries at the same time. Whatever happens at the end of the process - my colleague, Senator Colm Burke, made this point a few minutes ago - we must have purged everything there is to be purged from An Garda Síochána. There are good, decent men and women in the Garda who are doing a great day's work and serving the country well morning, noon and night. God knows, some gardaí were shot and killed in the service of the country. How can we expect the young men and women concerned to go out and put their necks on the line if they are maligned on every bar stool in every pub in the country as crooked and corrupt? They are not. They are decent men and women and we need to protect them and their good names.

I agree with what my colleague, Senator Michael McDowell, said this morning and this evening and what many other speakers have said. The Garda Commissioner has no choice: if she is ethical, she must step aside and allow Mr. Justice Charleton to do his work. When the time comes, she may retake her position with honour, assuming no finding has been made against her.

I thank the Minister. I know that she has taken a lot of stick in the past few days. It never ceases to amaze me how she manages to stay on her feet and take what comes at her. She sees matters through to the end and I know she will see this one through to the end. I have every confidence in her and thank her for coming before the House as I know that she has had a tough day.