The latest report from the Morris tribunal leaves the Government and the Garda Commissioner, Noel Conroy, with no wriggle room. It outlines, in the starkest possible terms, the inescapable need to reform the structures and procedures and to alter the ethos of the Garda Síochána.
Efforts were made by members of the Garda in Co Donegal nine years ago to find people guilty of a murder that never took place. That followed the fabrication of evidence of subversion by members of the force and the planting of explosives. Since then, there has been an effective conspiracy by members of the Garda in Co Donegal to pervert the course of justice and to cover up the negligent and sometimes illegal actions of their colleagues. Lies were consistently told to the Morris tribunal under oath. But, in spite of such obstruction, evidence of a dysfunctional and unaccountable police force has now been provided to the Government in two separate reports by the tribunal.
The time for reviews, consultations and working parties is long gone. And the Garda Síochána Bill, at present before the Dáil, should be significantly amended. Those gardaí who refuse to account for their actions while on duty should be penalised. More importantly, the proposed three-person Independent Ombudsman Commission should be scrapped in favour of the more robust Ombudsman model that operates in the North. Provision must also be made for the employment of senior officers from other police forces to ensure best international practice. And there must be recruitment of members from minority ethnic and religious groups.
It would be comforting if the Donegal experience could be blamed on a couple of "bad apples" within the force. Unfortunately, what happened is not an isolated incident. The case of Dean Lyons springs to mind, where nobody has been held responsible for bringing wrongful charges of murder. And, every year, dozens of civil cases are taken against members of the Garda by aggrieved citizens, only to be settled quietly out of court.
There is a general malaise within the Garda Síochána in terms of discipline and accountability, where members exercise primary allegiance towards their colleagues, rather than to the rule of law. Co-operation has been withheld from internal disciplinary inquiries, from the Garda Complaints Board and even from tribunals. The Morris tribunal found reserve, amounting almost to hostility, between serving gardaí and senior officers. This echoes industrial relations problems yet to be addressed, even in the aftermath of the infamous "blue 'flu".
The Garda Commissioner has promised new structures and procedures to address many of the issues raised in the first Morris report. And the Minister for Justice offered disciplinary action and a new Garda Inspectorate. More is required. When the Dáil considers the Garda Síochána Bill in two weeks time, there must be agreement on a new Ombudsman; the recruitment of outside police officers and a new disciplinary regime.