TWO-HOUR MEETING OR A BRIEF CHAT OVER TEA?

Quotes from the Dail’s Public Accounts Committee last Thursday

GARDA COMMISSIONER,

NOIRIN O’SULLIVAN: “...I believe there was a very brief conversation in a room after the meeting in Templemore in which Mr Barrett raised certain issues specifically around some work he was doing when I was present along with two deputy commissioners and the chief administrative officer. My recollection is very brief. I would say, I don’t know deputy but I would say from recollection and memory it was brief.” JOHN BARRETT, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF HUMAN RESOURCES, GARDA SIOCHANA: “I think it lasted two hours.” MR BARRETT: “It was [two hours]. It’s in the minutes.

COMMISSIONER: “My memory is that it was a brief meeting after a very long meeting that we had in the Garda College and my memory is that it was brief, and the issues in relation to the college but there was an undertaking given that basically there would be a report forwarded.”

COMMISSIONER: “...My memory is that after a long meeting in the college I, accompanied by the chief administrative officer, two deputy commissioners, were in the reception room having some tea. Mr Barrett arrived into the room and spoke about the issues...”

MR BARRETT: “The time is in the meeting. I made a reference to when the meeting began. I’ll give you the details, it’s in the document. The meeting began and ended. It started at 5.20 and even tells us the order in which people came into the room believe it or not. (Reading from the memo) ‘The meeting of the Garda Council of Monday July 27 was important in respects you’ll recall began at 17.20... I left the meeting at 19.37 and I was the first to leave’.”