Comfortable majority for Taoiseach in motion of confidence

The Government had an expected comfortable majority of 94 to 52 in a Dáil vote on a motion of confidence in Taoiseach Enda Kenny following a heated three-hour debate.

Amid trenchant opposition criticism of his role in the circumstances leading to the resignation of former Garda commissioner Martin Callinan, Mr Kenny reiterated the “clear and unambiguous findings” of the Fennelly Commission that the question of removing him was “never discussed or contemplated”.

Insisting he was vindicated by the Fennelly commission he also re-iterated his own “absolute confidence” in Attorney General Máire Whelan, who was also criticised for her role in events leading to Mr Callinan’s departure.

He had confidence in her handling of the “very serious issues that have given rise to the establishment of the Fennelly Commission” into issues including Garda investigations of a number of criminal cases and the taping for decades of phone calls in Garda stations.

Ms Whelan “is a diligent and hardworking Attorney General who provides outstanding service to the Government and to the country”, Mr Kenny said.

The Taoiseach added that a decision by Sinn Féin to include the Attorney General in its motion of no confidence was “ill-judged”.

He also claimed that the tabling of motions of no confidence in him and the Attorney General “has more to do with the competition between Opposition parties” than any real interest in the issue.

And telling the Dáil the general election would take place next year he said “in early 2016 the people of Ireland will have a clear choice – a choice between government or chaos”.

Accusation

The Taoiseach told the House that Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin had repeatedly accused him of sacking the former commissioner. “The conclusion of the Fennelly report states clearly that this was not the case.”

He called on Mr Martin to correct the Dáil record and that if he did not he would follow the long tradition of Fianna Fáil leaders who “refuse to accept the findings of sworn judicial inquiries”.

But Mr Martin insisted “the Taoiseach’s actions on March 24th, 2015, represented the effective sacking of the commissioner of An Garda Síochána”.

He launched a scathing attack on the Taoiseach, describing him as “panicked” and accusing him of “withholding information, twisting statistics” and of refusing to answer questions.

He also described the Attorney General as an honourable person “and it is a pity that she has failed to do the honourable thing and be accountable for her part in this affair”.

Her office was aware of the issue of the tapes of Garda station phone calls, four months before the events of March last year and the meeting at which the former general secretary of the Department of Justice was sent to Mr Callinan’s home.

Mr Martin said Ms Whelan “did not have or present the full information to the Taoiseach and contributed to the unprecedented forced departure of the commissioner”.

‘Scapegoating’

The concerns raised by the Attorney General about the taping of conversations at Garda stations were serious but did not warrant a “rush to judgment and scapegoating”.

He said it was a mark of how low Fine Gael and Labour had sunk that “they claim as vindication a report which shows chaos at the centre of government and a Taoiseach incapable of owning up to the implications of his own actions”.

The Fennelly report showed “a Taoiseach who panicked when he heard from the Attorney General about a serious issue”, Mr Martin said.

He reached conclusions “without hearing all the evidence and has since then tried to hide, twist and turn and then deny the impact of his own actions”, the Fianna Fáil leader added.