Bruton defends Taoiseach over whistleblowers
He was speaking after it emerged Enda Kenny failed to act on warnings from one of his own party TDs who told him in February that Sergeant Maurice McCabe would be “vindicated”.
Waterford TD, John Deasy spoke to the Taoiseach on February 20 following a private meeting between Mr McCabe and the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on allegations of penalty point cancellations.
He also told the Taoiseach there were “deficiencies” in an internal Garda report by assistant commissioner John O’Mahony, on penalty point cancellations.
In a follow-up letter on March 21, Mr Deasy told the Taoiseach: “What I and many of my colleagues don’t understand is why Alan [Shatter] would treat the whistleblowers in the manner he has in the last couple of months.”
Mr Bruton rushed to the defence of the Taoiseach yesterday.
“The Guerin Report was appointed in February and it reported very promptly. It was one of the fastest reports and the Government acted on that,” he said.
The Guerin Report related to more widespread allegations of Garda malpractice, separate to the penalty point claims which were the subject of Mr Deasy’s communications with the Taoiseach.
Mr Bruton added: “We are now entering into a new phase.
“The minister for justice has completely looked at the realignment of her department and honestly looked at the weaknesses in it and is setting out a strategy for the future.”
He said: “This has been all about responding to the weaknesses that have been exposed in this process.”
Furthermore, he said that the Taoiseach had nothing to hide in relation to his role in the resignation of the former Garda Commissioner, Martin Callinan.
“The Government has appointed a statutory inquiry which will report before the end of the year, and an all-party committee asked that specifically this would be put on its agenda,” he said.
The Fennelly Inquiry which is examining a range of Garda-related issues “is the appropriate forum for these issues to be addressed”, Mr Bruton said.
One of the whistleblowers at the centre of the penalty point claims, retired Garda John Wilson, said he believes the Taoiseach still has questions to answer about Mr Callinan’s sudden exit from office.
