The Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, said he did what he had to do in dealing with the Sheedy controversy and there was little more he could have done.
Defending his role as Minister and that of the Government he said the position in the case, as in any other, was that if a specific allegation of criminal conduct was made to the Garda authorities with a credible basis it would be investigated.
He said it was his understanding that to date no such allegation had been made. He was responding to Mr Charles Flanagan (FG, Laois-Offaly), who asked what steps the Minister would take to "investigate fully all the circumstances" of the case, and "ensuring that any person responsible for wrong-doing would be made accountable".
Mr Flanagan said the "application of the rule of law in this affair was so flexible as to be seriously compromised", and he asked if the Minister was satisfied that the impartiality of the courts "has in no way been compromised".
Mr O'Donoghue said the Chief Justice was the chief law officer of the land and he was asked to carry out the inquiry. He brought his conclusions to Government, they were considered and the Government took what it considered was appropriate action.