Taoiseach Enda Kenny yesterday rejected opposition claims that Justice Minister Alan Shatter deliberately tried to undermine the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC), adding Mr Shatter would have no difficulty answering questions when he appears before the Oireachtas Oversight Committee later today.

The Government is to seek sweeping new powers to allow it to shut down mobile phone networks as a security measure to counteract threats of terrorist acts at the upcoming G8 summit in Northern Ireland.