Nóirín O’Sullivan’s statement in part ‘quite literally, incredible’

Labour leader Brendan Howlin rejected the explanations offered by Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan on Monday, calling parts of her statement "quite literally, incredible".

“During her press conference today, the Garda Commissioner said that no deliberate distortion of facts or falsification of figures had yet been established. This is, quite literally, incredible. Commissioner O’Sullivan’s position seems to be that almost a million mistakes might have happened over recent years,” Mr Howlin said.

“Exaggerated numbers of breath tests – almost a million of them – were recorded. Whether this happened deliberately or by mistake, somebody must accept responsibility for either position.

"What we have seen today is further evidence of a culture in An Garda Síochána where no responsibility is ever taken. The commissioner has announced that her investigation will focus on gardaí, on supervisors and on managers. But if responsibility for this saga is spread this widely across the organisation, then it must also lie at the top level of that organisation," he said.

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On Monday Sinn Féin published a motion of no confidence in the commissioner which is scheduled to be debated in the Dáil next week. The motion concludes that “The removal from office of the Garda Commissioner would be in the best interests of An Garda Síochána.”

No confidence

The party’s justice spokesman, Jonathan O’Brien, said that, “the people of this State are entitled to a standard of policing in which accountability is central to the ethos of the service. This must be achieved on the basis of fairness, impartially and objectivity. This standard does not exist presently. The necessary public confidence in Garda management does not exist at this time.”

Earlier the party’s deputy leader, Mary Lou McDonald, said that the situation was now “farcical” as the force “lurches from one crisis to another”.

A series of Government Ministers expressed confidence in the commissioner throughout the day, though it is expected the issue will dominate Tuesday morning’s Cabinet meeting.

Tánaiste Frances Fitzgerald met Ms O'Sullivan for a lengthy discussion on Monday morning at which the commissioner undertook to hold the afternoon's press conference outlining the steps she was taking to deal with the controversy.

Earlier, Taoiseach Enda Kenny reaffirmed his confidence in the commissioner but said there was “an opportunity for the commissioner to set out all of the facts”.

Speaking in Tralee, Mr Kenny said: “I do expect that the commissioner will outline for the Minister for Justice the facts, as can be put in the public domain, the facts that are available to her.”

Stand aside

There has been a litany of calls for the commissioner to stand aside after revelations that 14,700 people were wrongly convicted of motoring offences and breathalyser tests were exaggerated by one million.

Minister for Education Richard Bruton said the Government was not happy about the revelations and insisted a proper explanation was required from the commissioner. However, he insisted Ms O'Sullivan retains his full confidence.

Minister for Social Protection Leo Varadkar urged Opposition parties not to table a motion of no confidence in Ms O'Sullivan, saying she is part of the solution, not part of the problem. He said the commissioner had put solutions in place to deal with the controversies.

“I would hope and expect that Opposition parties would not try to play politics with this very important issue.

"There are other mechanisms suggested – for example it has been suggested she may appear before the Oireachtas committee on justice to give further explanations and to inform us what happens next," he said.

“I would ask Opposition parties not to try exploit this or play politics with this and to desist from putting down a motion until at least the Cabinet has an opportunity to discuss it and the Garda Commissioner has an opportunity to account for it.”

It is expected Ms O’Sullivan will be called to appear before the Oireachtas Justice and Equality Committee on Wednesday to face questions on the matter.