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Protected Disclosures in the Public Interest

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 February 2014

Wednesday, 5 February 2014

Questions (13, 25)

Mick Wallace

Question:

13. Deputy Mick Wallace asked the Minister for Justice and Equality in view of the experiences of the Garda whistleblowers, if he is satisfied with the manner in which the position of the confidential recipient is operating; if he has any plans to review the workings of this position; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5349/14]

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Clare Daly

Question:

25. Deputy Clare Daly asked the Minister for Justice and Equality his views in relation to the functioning of the Garda confidential recipient; and his views on whether it needs to be reformed in order to protect Garda whistleblowers. [5308/14]

View answer

Written answers

I propose to take Questions Nos. 13 and 25 together.

The Garda Síochána (Confidential Reporting of Corruption or Malpractice) Regulations 2007 provide for an independent Confidential Recipient to whom members of the Force can report, in confidence, instances where they believe there may be corruption or malpractice within the Force. The Confidential Recipient is required to transmit each report to the Garda Commissioner for investigation, but there are strong safeguards in the Regulations for the protection of the identities of confidential reporters.

This procedure was put in place as part of a sectoral approach towards the protection of whistleblowers, with different provisions made for different sectors. This Government is taking a different approach, as we promised in the Programme for Government, and is committed to a unified system of strong and effective protection for whistleblowers, in both the public and private sectors, based on international best practice. These proposals are contained in the Protected Disclosures Bill 2013, which has been published by my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. The Bill has been passed by Seanad Éireann and awaits second stage in this House.

I recently indicated that I was considering the relevant provisions of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 with a view to empowering the Garda Ombudsman Commission to operate within the architecture of the Protected Disclosures Bill and to receive and act on confidential reports by members of the Garda Síochána.

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