Committee plans ‘tight review’ of oversight laws

Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan and Ombudsman chairman Simon O’Brien could appear before an Oireachtas committee review of oversight laws.

The chairman of the Oireachtas Justice Committee, FG TD David Stanton, said it was going to be a “very tight” review and hoped to produce a report for Justice Minister Alan Shatter by early May.

Meanwhile, the vice chair of the committee, Labour TD Anne Ferris, said staffing cuts at the Ombudsman, revealed in the Irish Examiner yesterday, should form part of the review.