Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 15 September 2021
376. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Defence the reason that he chose not to act when it was brought to his attention in January 2017 through a protected disclosure that a captain was bullied, sexually abused, victimised and discriminated against in the Defence Forces and that he informed the person that their protected disclosure was subjective. [43573/21]
View answerAs Minister for Defence I receive information on matters such as those described both formally by way of regular reports from the Chief of Staff and by correspondence provided to me in a confidential manner by individuals who wish to have their identity protected. I have a statutory duty to comply with that wish. On this basis, it would be inappropriate for me to discuss individual cases.
Information received by the Department of Defence is assessed for the purposes of determining potential courses of action. This assessment has regard to:
- the powers available to me under the law
- the powers and expertise of other agencies of the State
- respect for due process and fair procedures
- my duties as an employer
- the source and type of information and
- the manner in which the information is received.
Officials from the Department of Defence have interacted extensively with those who have provided information, both through personal meetings, phone calls and correspondence. As these are allegations which are criminal in nature and parties on all sides have rights, it is appropriate that these allegations should be investigated by a competent authority. All parties have been given appropriate contact details and urged to report these allegations of serious criminal offences to an Garda Síochána.
