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functions; and — that selective internal investigations within An Garda Síochána have been weaponised against members of the force who raise legitimate concerns, submit protected disclosures or act as whistleblowers; calls on the Government to initiate a public inquiry into the conduct of internal Garda investigations during, and subsequent

will haunt the Minister, Deputy McEntee. What will also haunt them is the manner in which they did not deal appropriately with protected disclosures that were made to them. I guarantee that it will come back to haunt these Ministers. I guarantee

with the complaint upon reply. Protected disclosures were made

Minister and the chairman of the inquiry signed, on the disclosure of State materials. It also reflects the data protection regulations introduced to enable the lawful disclosure of sensitive personal data. The Bill does adds a further layer of practical co-operation. It creates a bespoke legal mechanism … Assisting an inquiry established under the law of another jurisdiction is legally complex. It raises serious issues around sovereignty, security, due process, witness protection and the integrity of criminal investigations. It is, therefore, right that the legislation is careful, structured and grounded in law but we should also

understanding which the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, signed with the chairperson of Omagh bombing inquiry last April on the disclosure of Irish State materials and the data protection regulations signed by the Minister last month to enable the disclosure of sensitive personal data to the inquiry. Despite multiple … that. By establishing a robust statutory framework to honour our commitment to assist the inquiry to fulfil its terms of reference while also protecting the essential interests of the State and the rights of witnesses involved, this Bill creates a bespoke legal mechanism allowing all evidence

have fought for so long. I note the architecture that preceded this Bill. It includes the memorandum of understanding on disclosure of state materials, the data protection regulations that enable transfer of sensitive personal data and the directives to the Garda Commissioner to support co-operation. They were … delay is the sheer volume of state material still being processed. The lead counsel to the inquiry has confirmed the full Irish disclosure will not be complete until June. I want to be fair here. The inquiry's own counsel has praised the efforts of the State

bombing for a cross-Border public inquiry. The families, who have campaigned for 27 years for that inquiry, deserve full transparency and full disclosure about the events that led to the killing of their loved ones. The Government declined to establish a parallel independent inquiry in this jurisdiction … that might work in practice. Concerns have also been raised that national security limits could restrict disclosure because governments, and particularly that of our nearest neighbours, often protect intelligence services and operations. Under the terms of this Bill, officials may decline to provide evidence and broad security claims

vulnerable. We have had too many scandals whereby vulnerable patients, particularly our women and children, were failed by the systems that should have protected them. These must be the last scandals. We cannot stand over a health system that fails to learn lessons even after severe harm … Government TD, I believe our responsibilities now are immense. We must ensure full transparency. Families deserve the truth and not partial disclosures or defensive statements but the full facts. We must ensure accountability. Where wrongdoing occurred, it must be acknowledged clearly and addressed appropriately. Professional standards must

over what people see, read and hear, it is right that we take steps to ensure diversity of voices and opinions and the protection of editorial independence. The intention behind this legislation to prevent undue concentration of media power and promote transparency is reasonable. The requirement for greater … ability of citizens to hear competing arguments, to weigh them and to make up their own minds. If decisions about what constitutes acceptable disclosures are shifted away from the public sphere and into the hands of the regulator, however well-intentioned, we risk undermining that very foundation. This

everything in it. That is before we ask the fundamental question of this process, which is whether it allows for full and frank disclosure to get to the truth of what happened. Of course, there should be safeguards for those giving evidence, which is essential, but whether … long? It is not prescribed enough or detailed enough. There are so many outs for those who, though they have to be protected under the Constitution, need to give evidence and give access to information, records and data. We will not get all the information these people desperately

result in a highly segmented process. I believe that the vetting system should be updated to ensure that the burden of seeking vetting disclosures, particularly on volunteers and organisations working in their communities, is minimised to the greatest extent possible, while maintaining the high standards that are necessary … support the revised approach. This work will make the process more efficient for volunteers and organisations without compromising the essential safeguards that protect those in our care. The Department is engaging with An Garda Síochána on the best way to deliver these changes, while maintaining the high vetting

highly technical and complex Bill with consequences for a number of different Acts which touch on sensitive and difficult areas concerning the disclosure of criminal convictions. This Bill aims to extend eligibility for the current spent convictions regime to more people with longer sentences and to remove … essential safeguard to ensure the integrity of the law, especially where it has the potential to affect sensitive matters like the vetting protections the Oireachtas has put in place for children and vulnerable people. With the right approach, grounded in engagement between the Department of justice, the Bill

Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether the statutory functions of the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (as amended) are considered to be fully discharged once a disclosure has been transmitted to a prescribed

Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether offences under section 14A of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, as inserted by the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022, are recorded under a distinct offence code within the Garda crime-recording system

Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the number of complaints or reports made to An Garda Síochána alleging offences under section 14A of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014, as inserted by the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022, in each year since that provision commenced; and the number of investigations

Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the number of times the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner has exercised its powers under section 10 of the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 (as amended) since its establishment; and if those powers have

Flynn asked the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation the procedures that exist within the Office of the Protected Disclosures Commissioner to reconsider or review a decision identifying the appropriate person or body to receive a protected disclosure where the originally identified body indicates

Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health the protections, supports, and remedies that are currently in place for healthcare staff who make protected disclosures within CHI and the HSE, including psychological supports, employment protections, and access to compensation or redress where harm has occurred. [22833/26

Justice, Home Affairs and Migration the specific actions that were taken to implement the recommendations arising from an investigation (details supplied) into protected disclosures concerning dysfunctional reporting systems; and the audit or verification that has been carried out to confirm their effectiveness in practice. [23472/26

Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Health whether she is aware of protected disclosures made by staff within CHI in relation to IT systems, governance, or patient safety concerns; if so, the actions that were taken; the investigations that were carried out; and the outcomes or remedial

asked the Minister for Health whether any communications have taken place between her and senior CHI leadership, including the CEO, in relation to protected disclosures made by staff; and if so, to provide details. [22832/26

Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether the reversal of the burden of proof provided for under the protected disclosures legislation applies only during formal adjudicative proceedings before bodies such as the Workplace Relations Commission and the courts, or whether it also applies during

Service Reform and Digitalisation whether any guidance has been issued to public bodies advising that the evidential presumption relating to retaliation under the protected disclosures legislation should be applied when assessing disclosures internally; and if no such guidance has issued, whether the Government has considered whether the absence

Public Service Reform and Digitalisation whether the Government has assessed whether administrative decisions taken without applying the evidential presumption provided for in the protected disclosures legislation may expose the State to avoidable litigation risk where those decisions are later challenged in proceedings before the Workplace Relations Commission

circulars, or instructions have been issued to Departments, agencies, or prescribed persons regarding the application of the evidential presumption provided for under the protected disclosures legislation when assessing alleged retaliation during the administrative handling of disclosures; and if such guidance exists, whether he will provide details

Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to outline the Department's policy regarding reviews of protected disclosure assessment decisions, including whether reviewers are required to be independent of the original decision-maker; whether reporting persons are informed of the reviewer

issued any policy guidance, circulars, statutory codes or administrative instructions concerning the classification and statistical reporting of offences under section 24 of the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022; whether his Department has undertaken any review of the adequacy of national reporting mechanisms for such offences since enactment

Migration the statistical and reporting framework relied upon by his Department for compiling figures on referrals and prosecutions under section 24 of the Protected Disclosures (Amendment) Act 2022; whether those figures are drawn from offences recorded under a distinct legislative code within national reporting systems; and whether

Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for Social Protection if his Department or any body under it’s aegis made a disclosure under Revenue's recent disclosure opportunity to regularise misclassification of self-employment; if so, to provide details of the numbers of workers affected and the amount

Deputy Mairéad Farrell asked the Minister for Social Protection further to Parliamentary Question No. 760 of 10 February 2026, if any internal briefing notes, guidance documents, policy papers, emails, memoranda or tracking systems exist within his Department concerning the enforcement, monitoring or recovery of retrospective PRSI liabilities arising … decisions (details supplied); whether any records exist documenting engagement with the Revenue Commissioners regarding the operational interaction between Scope determinations and the Karshan Disclosure Opportunity; if such records exist, whether he will reconcile their existence with FOI-2026-28668, which stated that no such records exist