Justice Minister defends Garda Commissioner as she orders independent probe
The Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald has strongly defended the Garda Commissioner in the face of continuing opposition calls for her to step down.
Frances Fitzgerald said an independent external investigation must find out if the controversies surrounding breath tests and speeding convictions were the result of carelessness or collusion.
In the Dáil last night, she said Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan is the best person to lead the force.
However, Ms Fitzgerald said she was unaware of the scale of the latest crisis in the Gardaí until last week.
"I did not become aware of the huge discrepancy in the breath test figures until it was revealed at last week’s Garda press conference," she said.
She broke her silence in the Dáil last night, saying her department was first told in the summer of 2014 that the concerns about breath tests had been examined and no issue was found.
"An Garda Siochána indicated in a detailed letter to my Department in May 2014 that they had looked into the claims regarding MAT checkpoints and they were satisfied that correct procedures were in place to account for MAT checkpoints that ultimately did go ahead."
