Met fires fines at politicians while our lot stall Leo’s case
POLICE in London are able to fire out fixed penalty fines like confetti for Covid lockdown breaches, including to prime minister Boris Johnson, only a few weeks after commencing their investigations into widespread and multiple shenanigans and knees-up on Downing Street.
But our crowd in Garda Headquarters are still painstakingly investigating whether Tánaiste Leo Varadkar may be criminally liable for leaking a confidential document to a friend in April, 2019 – which, if I’m correct, is precisely three years ago.
Now, in fairness to the gardaí, it was only in March of last year that they confirmed a criminal investigation into the leaking of a copy of the Government’s proposed new GP contract with the Irish Medical Organisation, by Mr Varadkar to Dr Maitiú Ó Tuathail, then head of the rival National Association of General Practitioners.
Nevertheless, that’s more than 13 months ago, about 400 days.
And still nothing to indicate where this probe (which appears to be about nothing but fluff in the first place) is going, nothing to tell us if the second-most-powerful man in the country is to be dragged in front of a court, not a dicky bird about the direction of an inquiry that could have profound implications for who governs the country.
IT’S a given that Garda inquiries need to be conducted in a timely manner and for a host of reasons. Those who fall under suspicion are entitled to have the matter decided in a timescale that doesn’t have the effect of putting their lives on hold for longer than is absolutely necessary. The injustice of a long, drawn-out, interminable police investigation is obvious.
Further, in normal criminal investigations where actual victims are required to wait in a state of high anxiety, it is a fundamental principle of good policing that promptness is not sacrificed in the interests of perfection, or indeed laziness.
By the middle of April last year gardaí finally got around to interviewing Mr Varadkar. Detectives from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation spoke to the Tánaiste after placing him under caution – all very serious stuff (as if the gardaí have nothing much more pressing to concern them).
One year on and still nothing. Which fully explains why the Tánaiste’s lawyers have been inquiring with the Garda about how matters are progressing or, as it seems, not progressing at all. At the end of January, Mr Varadkar was forced to defend such moves, as if there was the slightest inappropriate thing about his legal eagles attempting to find out where he stands.
It appears that gardaí are focusing on whether Mr Varadkar, as Taoiseach, may have breached section 7 of the Criminal Justice (Corruption Offences) Act of 2018.
To fall foul of that provision, the Tánaiste must have leaked the contract for the purpose of ‘corruptly’ obtaining a gift, consideration or advantage for himself or any other person. ‘Corruptly’ is defined in the act, but not in a way that could be described as watertight, which means that lawyers would be likely to play ducks and drakes with the precise meaning of that word if the matter ever sees the inside of the courtroom.
Further, the 2018 Act refers to ‘confidential’ information, which in the context of the GP contract is laughable, seeing as how most, if not all of it, was already public by the time Mr Varadkar ‘leaked’ it.
All of which means that Mr Varadkar’s ‘offence’, for which he has already apologised, isn’t exactly a war crime, now is it? In fact, it seems clear it’s not a crime at all.
Which begs the question: why hasn’t the Garda already dispelled this puff of smoke?
That question is all the more vital with December approaching and Mr Varadkar scheduled to take over as Taoiseach.
How can he possibly do that with this Garda criminal investigation still hanging over this head?
The only people delighted with this Garda foot-dragging right now are the Tánaiste’s critics within his own party who’d love to see him dislodged, and Sinn Féin on the outside. Whatever the merits of their opposition, they should not be assisted collaterally by a Garda investigation which doesn’t have a clear end in sight.
THE Gardaí are required to have regard for the interests of all people tangled up in any of their investigations – including those suspected of committing an offence. This applies also to the Tánaiste, and his career as a politician should not be allowed to distract from that basic principle.
Because this a matter of such enormous democratic and public significance, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris needs to bring clarity to the issue.
He needs to ensure this matter is resolved well in advance of the upcoming December deadline.
Perhaps a peek at of the Metropolitan Police playbook on the issue of timeliness might be of some help.
The public needs a decision, one way or the other.