No political will evident to reform Garda

WELL, that’s sorted then. Everything has changed. The publication of the Guerin report into allegations made by Sergeant Maurice McCabe has ushered in a new era. From here on, An Garda Siochána will be properly accountable. Whistleblowers will be listened to.

A review of the workings of the Department of Justice will highlight its failings in ignoring the cries of Sergeant McCabe. The new Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald, is pushing a broom through her portfolio, sweeping out the dirt, letting in the light. That bygone age of Shatter and Callinan is fading from memory. Move along, it’s all sorted. Nothing more to see here.

By their actions shall we know them. The first move in a new dispensation is to recognise the past, and where it went wrong. Just over a week out from the publication of Guerin, and it seems that that cathartic imperative has been completely ignored.