Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and the fact that the Leader acceded to our request when Senator Rose Conway-Walsh and I asked that these statements take place today on the Order of Business earlier. I am grateful for that.

It is disappointing that we are again debating the need for a public inquiry into the death of Mr. Shane O'Farrell. This is a matter we all thought had been resolved by previous debates and votes on motions in both the Dáil and Seanad, as other speakers have noted. Like them, I express my condolences to the O'Farrell family on the tragic loss of their son and brother, Shane, who as we know was killed in a tragic event on 2 August 2011, more than eight years ago, when he was cycling near Carrickmacross. Shane and his family have a long connection with Trinity College Dublin and the law school in particular there. I commend my TCD colleague, Senator David Norris, who has led in making representations on behalf of the family in this House. I acknowledge he has been supported by many others.When the motion for a public inquiry came before the Seanad on 13 February at Senator Norris's request, it was passed, with all agreed on it, and a similar motion was passed by the Dáil in June 2018. We are back here again because of the family's serious concerns about the failure to implement in full the express wishes of the Dáil and Seanad on the need for a public inquiry. That is what makes this so disappointing. Like others, I have spoken to Lucia, Gemma and the O'Farrell family when they were in front of Leinster House some two weeks ago to express their concerns about the narrowing of the terms of reference, which appear to be much more restrictive than those originally drawn up for the scoping exercise to be conducted by Judge Haughton, for whom, like others, I have immense respect. However, it is unfortunate that these terms of reference have been so narrowed. I am glad that today the Minister has clarified to the Seanad that there is no impediment on Judge Haughton to make any recommendation he sees fit and that the O'Farrell family is free to make representations to him.

However, it is unfortunate that the Minister referred to the case of Shatter v. Guerin, as others have noted. In the Dáil, my Labour Party colleague, Deputy Penrose, also spoke on this. What should have been done in respect of Shatter v. Guerin, was that the Government should have reverted to the Dáil and Seanad as promised, if a proposal was going to be put forward on the Attorney General's advice to amend the terms of reference. Instead, it was an Opposition motion that brought the Government back to the House on the issue in the Dáil last week and it is a request by the Opposition which brought the Minister here before the Seanad today to deal with the issue again. It is unfortunate that there is not a more proactive approach being taken by the Government on this matter, given the express wishes of both Dáil and Seanad to see a public inquiry established.

Senator Norris and others have listed the family's points of concerns but they are that the terms of reference are more restrictive and in particular that they do not facilitate the inquiry being conducted into two specific issues. The first is a review of the investigations carried out to date, given the piecemeal investigations meaning that each procedural failing was looked at and treated as a separate event, rather than enabling us to have an overview of the entire chain of events and what we have described previously as a litany of failures across policing and justice agencies on both sides of the Border. That is important. As I have said previously, we have seen a number of different reports over some years, notably reports from the Garda Inspectorate, from Mr. Sean Guerin, senior counsel, and from the Morris tribunal, which have been highly critical of failings in policing and in criminal justice administration in the Border counties and a lack of communication in particular, between policing and prosecuting authorities on both sides of the Border. That is the first point that needs to be addressed in a scoping exercise and subsequently in a public inquiry. We also need a review of changes in law and practice in the context of bail and bench warrants. Lack of communications amounted to a serious issue. Because of gaps in the system, as other have noted, someone who should have been stopped and who arguably should not have been at liberty was free to perpetrate this utterly tragic and horrific death. This is a breakdown in the criminal justice system and in our system of policing. That is why all of us in these Houses have called for a public inquiry, to ensure that not only do we know what happened and what was the chain of events that led to the death of Shane O'Farrell so tragically in August 2011 but also to ensure that we can identify the system failings that occurred and that contributed to that death to ensure that they will not be allowed to happen again.

To conclude on a different note, as someone who cycles every day and who has regularly raised issues around cycle safety in this House, I am concerned about a failure to ensure adequate safety for cyclists and a failure to prioritise the safety of cyclists in national transport policy. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Ross, was just in the House dealing with transport issues. There has been a real lack of prioritisation of cyclists and of cycle safety. Only in the last few weeks there was a very tragic death of a cyclist in my local area of Dublin 8, on the South Circular Road. We have seen a number of really awful accidents and deaths of cyclists on our roads in recent years. Not only do we need to ensure that we have a means of addressing systemic failures in criminal justice and in policing where people can continue to drive when they clearly should have been put off the road, but we must also address systemic failings in our transport policy that lead to a lack of safety for cyclists on our roads. I speak as someone who sees daily the real hazards for cyclists in Dublin city centre in the lack of joined-up thinking around provision of Luas, road layout and facilities for cyclists and pedestrians. Cycle safety is also a real concern looking outside Dublin. That is part of the context in which this horrific death happened. I will conclude by expressing my admiration and respect for the O'Farrell family, and for the dignity and persistence they have shown in seeking to ensure that nobody else will suffer the same tragedy they did.