Vol. 483 No. 6
24 Mr. Higgins (Mayo) asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will establish an official inquiry in view of the recent court judgment which awarded £100,000 damages to a company (details supplied) due to a leak of information regarding a Garda search of the company's offices; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21270/97]
I assume Deputy Higgins has in mind an official inquiry into those aspects of the Garda handling of the matter which were the subject of criticisms, expressed or implied, in the judgment to which he referred. Before I deal with those criticisms it is only right to draw attention to the positive aspects of the judgment from a law enforcement point of view, in particular, the vindication of the Garda Síochána in its decision to seek essential evidential material in this case and then to proceed by way of section 64 rather than section 63 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1994. This retains the advantages to be gained from section 64 in the pursuit of the ill-gotten gains of modern day ruthless criminals, especially those involved in the sale and supply of drugs.
During the recent debate on my Department's Supplementary Estimate I indicated to the Deputy my concern about aspects of the court's judgment and my intention to seek a full report from the Garda Commissioner. The Garda Commissioner has informed me that it is his strict policy to preserve the privacy of individuals. He has informed me that practically every day of the year the gardaí behave, and Garda Press Office personnel respond, in a way which ensures this policy is adhered to. Nevertheless, the court found, as a matter of probability, that the leak of information regarding the proposed search of the premises emanated from a Garda source.
The Garda Commissioner has advised me that informal inquiries were conducted by the Garda authorities to establish the source of the leak, an approach which, according to the advice I have received, can be more successful on occasion than the more formal inquiry. Because of the finding of the court and because of the commissioner's overall concern about this judgment, he has appointed a senior officer to investigate the matter thoroughly.
(Mayo): Will the Minister accept, as the judge said, there is probably a criminal matter at stake here? Will he accept this is not the first time an incident such as this occurred? For example, is he aware a similar incident occurred when an adviser to a former Minister was arrested days before the presidential election and obviously the media was tipped off? Is an investigation ongoing in that regard? I approve of the powers given to the Criminal Assets Bureau. Under operation pineapple the Garda sought files relating to the property transactions of John and Geraldine Gilligan. Are negotiations taking place between the Criminal Assets Bureau and the legal representatives of John and Geraldine Gilligan on a possible settlement for unlawful seizure of their property?
It is not my intention to, nor can I, discuss operational matters in so far as they relate to the Garda authorities or the Criminal Assets Bureau. The Garda Commissioner has advised me that informal inquiries were conducted to establish the source of the leak in this matter. Very often such approaches yield best results.
Because of the finding of the court and because of the Garda Commissioner's serious concern about the judgment of the court, he appointed a senior officer to investigate the matter. When that investigation is to hand the matter will be considered further. The question of whether a criminal offence took place in this case would then arise. The prosecution of an offence would be a matter for the Director of Public Prosecutions. I sincerely hope the source of the leak is identified because it is entirely unacceptable. I cannot progress the matter further in the absence of information, but when such information comes to hand appropriate action will be taken.
The time for priority questions is exhausted, but Questions Nos. 25 and 26 can be taken in ordinary time.
