Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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11. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the date on which he commissioned and received his Department's peer review report on the Verrimus report on potential unlawful surveillance in the offices of the Garda Ombudsman Commissioners; its conclusions on all three anomalies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9578/14]

Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)
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177. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality the date on which he commissioned and received his Department peer review report on the Verrimus report on potential unlawful surveillance in the offices of the Garda Ombudsman Commissioners; its conclusions on all three anomalies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9779/14]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 and 177 together.

An IT security consultancy was retained on 14 February 2014 to provide an expert IT security opinion on the reports that GSOC had received from the security company it contracted. The report was received by the Department on 18 February 2014.

I gave the Cabinet my assessment of the potential damage to both the Garda Ombudsman Commission and the Garda Síochána, and more widely to public confidence in the enforcement of law, from the ongoing controversy relating to reports of unlawful surveillance of GSOC. The manner in which this controversy had continued, and the new information I had received, led me to the view that it was in the public interest that measures be taken to ensure that the full truth is established beyond dispute. In the light of that, I and my Cabinet colleagues agreed to the appointment of a retired High Court Judge to inquire into all matters of relevance to the controversy.

The Government subsequently appointed retired High Court Judge John Cooke to conduct an independent Inquiry into the reports of unlawful surveillance of the GSOC. The Terms of Reference for the Inquiry were agreed by the Government, on the advice of the Attorney General, and are available on the Department of the Taoiseach's website (www.taoiseach.gov.ie). Judge Cooke has been asked to report on these matters within 8 weeks or as soon as may be thereafter. Judge Cooke will be provided with any technical and secretarial assistance he requires, and I expect that all parties will cooperate fully with him.

I have already outlined to the House during the Private Members Motion on 18 February 2014 some of the differences that were highlighted in both reports. Copies of both technical reports will be provided to Judge Cooke as part of his inquiry. I am also arranging for a summary comparison report to be prepared for the Joint Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions.