Last Friday evening, a young woman died in Athlone. She was 27 years of age, a sister, a daughter and a friend. She was the second death from heroin in Athlone in the past two years, the same two years it has been since Garda whistleblower Nick Kehoe went to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC, to complain about the manner in which the investigation into his protected disclosure about Garda involvement in that very same heroin trade was being handled by the now acting Commissioner, Dónall Ó Cualáin. Two years, two deaths. If that was not bad enough, it is three and a half years since he made his original complaint yet not a single person has been arrested or charged and not a single person has been questioned under caution. While the print media were able to report a year ago that the investigation actually upheld the garda's complaint about Garda collusion in the heroin trade, the whistleblower heard nothing.

This decorated garda is out of work sick. He is about to go on substantially reduced wages. His absence was first recorded as influenza, then as sick - other and now as mental health even though his medical certificates clearly state that he is absent on work-related stress, which is a violation of his rights. GSOC has told him it cannot give him the findings of its investigation because the Garda is still investigating. Meanwhile, he has had to put in a bullying and harassment complaint against his superior officer, a complaint that was handed in by an assistant Commissioner for the attention of John Barrett, which has never been received.

One could not make this stuff up. This is An Garda Síochána now, in 2017, and the consequence of the failure to relinquish political control of policing by not installing a genuinely independent policing authority. It is the consequence of appointing Nóirín O'Sullivan and leaving her in the position for so long. That is not personal because the problems in the Garda are systemic and the reform will not come from those who were spawned by the system.

We have the spectacle this morning of a further delay and a holding off of the appointment of the new Commissioner until 2018. Of course, we want to do the job right this time around but there are enormous concerns around any type of delay. Perhaps Kathleen O'Toole is positioning herself. Perhaps she is responding to the resignation of Conor Brady and the very valid points he raised about the lack of genuine political will to undertake serious Garda reform. Perhaps that is what her move was about. What is needed now, however, is not just moves but change being delivered. Today, as people continue to suffer because of our failure to implement proper policing reform, what is the Taoiseach going to do to protect the whistleblowers and address the deficiencies in the system I have highlighted while we wait for that change to be delivered?

First, I am very sorry to hear about the death the Deputy mentioned. I do not know the details of the individual case but I am sorry to hear about it and extend my condolences to the individual's family and their loved ones.

On the specific allegations the Deputy makes, I am not at liberty to say whether they are true or not or to what extent they are true. It is not my role, and cannot be my role, to carry out judicial or quasi-judicial investigations.

I have the letter that Kathleen O'Toole, the chairperson of the commission on future policing, wrote to the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan. In the letter she expresses the view that it would be a serious mistake to proceed now to select a new Garda Commissioner until the commission has produced its report on the transformation of the national policing arrangements, and of course we will give full consideration to her views on this matter. She also says that she is struck by the large backlog of sensible recommendations from the inspectorate and others and the very slow pace of action on them. The Government shares her concern that the pace of Garda reform and cultural reform within the Garda has not been adequate to date.

The Minister, Deputy Flanagan, will certainly drive that forward with the new acting Commissioner. It is important, though, to acknowledge the very hard and very good work done across the country by our gardaí, who keep us safe from crime and prevent terrorism. We live in a low-crime society, and that is in no small part because of the men and women of An Garda Síochána.

The Deputy will be aware that we are increasing the size of the Garda force. It is already at 13,500; now it will increase to 15,000. More civilians are being appointed to the Garda, including to senior positions, which is a very important reform. The Policing Authority was established by the former Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Fitzgerald. The powers of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC, have been increased. We have appointed the Commission on the Future of Policing under Kathleen O'Toole to make further recommendations as to how we can reform the Garda. A major investment programme is also under way in IT, vehicles and stations. We have also agreed a pay settlement with gardaí, which will bring average salaries to €70,000 a year, which is a very good salary but one that they very much deserve. Of course, in return for all these measures, we are right to expect the very highest standards of probity and professionalism.

We live in a society with a dysfunctional police service. For years Fine Gael was supposedly the party of law and order. When the Taoiseach was a mere Cabinet Minister, twice he distinguished himself on policing issues, and we were never shy to recognise as much: getting the penalty points issues onto the record of the Dáil and supporting whistleblowers, whom he called "distinguished". Now that he is no longer one of the herd but the leader of the pack, his tone and demeanour in respect of this issue have changed, and I say that not lightly but with some cause for concern. That has not been the way he has conducted himself before now, and it would be regrettable if he were to go down that road now. The Garda Inspectorate report has all the answers to what we need for a modern policing service. The Patten commission cleared out the old guard not just at the top, but also throughout the middle ranks in order that a new broom and a new culture could be developed. That is and has been the job on hand, and none of the bodies the Taoiseach mentions - GSOC, the Policing Authority and so on - have been fit for purpose. His own Government has identified as much. I therefore genuinely appeal to the old Deputy Varadkar, when he was a Minister, to go back and look at these cases. There are distinguished whistleblowers there now. I ask him to listen to the points I am making about the deficiencies in the investigations and to come and ask us for more information.

I do not discount the seriousness of allegations that are made and I assure the Deputy that, if I have anything to do with them, they will be taken seriously. At the same time, we have a duty in this House not to assume that any allegation made is necessarily true. Allegations need to be investigated, and people are entitled to their good name and to due process, but I am very much committed to driving long-overdue Garda reform. It is a priority of the Government and a priority for the Minister, Deputy Flanagan. I do not take the view that one can suddenly engage in some sort of de-Ba'athification process overnight whereby every senior officer in the Garda is removed. That would be neither right nor fair because at least some of them must be good individuals who are doing the best job they can. The Commission on the Future of Policing certainly creates an opportunity to bring about real reform, and the Minister, Deputy Flanagan, and I will take into full consideration the advice of Kathleen O'Toole on the timing of the appointment of a new Commissioner.