Nóirín O’Sullivan faces more questions from Garda authority

Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan will today face further questions on the O'Higgins Inquiry report when she attends a meeting of the Policing Authority, the body charged with oversight of An Garda Síochána.

There was relief in Government circles yesterday when Ms O’Sullivan issued a statement clarifying her instructions to her lawyers at the inquiry.

However, she will likely be asked to explain failures in policing and management when she meets the authority.

It is understood she will also likely face questions about her statement, in which she acknowledged that while she did not instruct her legal team to question the integrity of the Garda whistleblower, Sgt Maurice McCabe, she did authorise her lawyers to interrogate his credibility and motivation.

“I cannot see how it would be in any way unreasonable, improper or avoidable to appropriately test and cross-examine the evidence of all persons giving evidence to the commission, including Sgt McCabe,” she said.

She denied instructing her lawyer to attack the garda’s credibility.

Calls to resign

The commissioner faced calls to resign last night during a Dáil debate on the O’Higgins report, which continues in the House today.

Ms O’Sullivan also faced calls to explain her actions when she learned a secret recording of a meeting between Sgt McCabe and two senior gardaí contradicted the account provided to the inquiry, as well as Garda management, by the two officers.

In her statement, the commissioner said she was asking the Minister for Justice to refer this matter to the Garda Ombudsman, though deputies told the Dáil that she must have known about it a year ago.

In the Dáil, Independent TD Mick Wallace named the two officers as Noel Cunningham and Yvonne Martin.

Gang violence

Although Ms O’Sullivan still faces questions on the affair, there was a sense in political circles last night that the controversy was on the wane, especially given the background of the gang warfare that has seen seven gun murders in Dublin in recent months.

Speaking to reporters at a Fianna Fáil event in Dublin last night, party leader Micheál Martin said he had confidence in the commissioner to lead the "reforms that are now essential" and said she must be supported in tackling gangland crime.

“I don’t agree with the statement that she should resign,” Mr Martin said.

“The gardaí have gone through a very turbulent period over the last while, and there are very serious issues to be dealt with.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny, meanwhile, has corrected the Dáil record, withdrawing comments he made about former justice minister Alan Shatter when he resigned two years ago.

“I am very pleased to acknowledge that the O’Higgins report has found clearly that the former minister acted properly at all times in relation to the handling of allegations made by Maurice McCabe,” the Taoiseach said.

Mr Shatter was out of the country last night and could not be reached for comment.

However, it is understood he does not believe the Taoiseach’s statement to be sufficient to correct the record, as a number of issues he raised in a recent letter to Mr Kenny have not been addressed.