POLITICIANS ON THE Oireachtas Committee for Defence and National Security believe the government has worked deliberately to stop the group from having any real oversight of defence or security in the country.
The issue has come to a head after An Garda Síochána’s Special Detective Unit and officials from the Department of the Taoiseach declined an invitation to a recent meeting to discuss national security concerns.
One member said the committee has been ‘nobbled’ with another claiming it was established with a ‘window-dressing element’.
The Journal has learned that in mid-November the Joint Committee on Defence and National Security invited the Special Detective Unit (SDU), a civil servant with responsibility for National Security with the Department of the Taoiseach and officials from the Department of Defence (DOD) to a formal meeting.
Of the three, only the DOD said it would send representatives, including two civil service members and a Defence Forces general who acts as the Joint Cyber Defence Commander.
The SDU is the operational garda unit with responsibility for domestic state security, counter terrorism and other threats such as espionage.
The briefing was proposed to be private, with no media or public in attendance.
The committee wanted to discuss the upcoming EU Presidency, including the security preparations for the event, with the agencies. Some members also wanted to raise broader questions about national security, including their concerns about its current state, as well as specific issues with security clearances and the use of Shannon Airport by US aircraft.
The committee sent all proposed topics and questions to the three organisations with the invitation.
In response, gardaí and the Department of Taoiseach contacted the committee to decline the invitation to attend the meeting. DOD said it would provide personnel for the scheduled private briefing session on 26 November. However, the meeting did not go ahead.
It is understood that in their correspondence, Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly, DOD Secretary General Jacqui McCrum and Department of Taoiseach John Callinan wrote that asking state security agencies questions about the broader topic of national security was outside the committee’s remit.
It is believed the bodies said that the terms of reference for the committee were limited to cyber defence, sub-sea critical infrastructure and related hybrid threats. These rules were set when the committee was formed after the November 2024 election.
On those grounds, the Commissioner and the two secretary generals declined the invitation to attend.
The terms of reference for the committee specifically mention that it “encompasses cyber-defence, sub-sea critical infrastructure and related hybrid threats” but only if they fall within the remit of the Defence department and the state bodies that fall under the DOD.
Incredulity
It is believed that members of the committee met the refusal to attend with incredulity.
We contacted a number of members who did not wish to comment publicly. However, committee chair Rose Conway Walsh said a formal statement would be made after a meeting later today where the issue will be discussed.
It is understood that members have also requested a meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin to find a way to change their terms of reference to allow for full explorations of state defence and security.
Conway Walsh told The Journal that it is time for the Oireachtas to take “national security seriously” and that she and her colleagues on the committee “certainly take it seriously”.
“Part of this must be security organisations and institutions willingness to engage with scrutiny and oversight,” the Sinn Féin TD continued.
“As a committee we have sought to constructively engage with An Taoiseach and An Garda Síochána by way of private confidential briefings in relation to relevant national security and intelligence matters.
“It is unfortunate and unacceptable that these proposals for constructive engagements have so far been declined.
“The country is facing very many unprecedented security challenges, not least as we near the start of our EU presidency next July. Confidence in our defence and national security planning is critical,” she said.
Member of the committee Senator Gerard Craughwell said the Government’s tactics have “nobbled” the committee, preventing it from “any real investigation into national security or national defence”.
He said that the committee had “resolved to push the boat out” but when they did that they were “stamped down”.
“The Defense and National Security Committee really has no oversight of defence or security in the country.
“We seem to be as a parliament, the only parliament in the western world that is not allowed to have oversight of defence and security and the government handling of it and the Government needs to explain why that is,” he added.
Labour TD and group member Duncan Smith also criticised the fact that the invitation wasn’t accepted. He said he had worked on Dáil Reform at the start of this year and, at the time, he had warned that there was a purposeful obstructive policy to stop the committee to properly interrogate the issue of national security.
“I think where the political class has performed well over many Dáils for many years, has been through the committee structures.
“In my experience, parliamentarians take their committee responsibilities very seriously.
“I don’t think this would have been any different. So I think it’s deeply disappointing having a window dressing element to this committee on international security, I don’t think this does the state any service,” he added.
State comment
A garda spokeswoman said: “An Garda Síochána does not comment on invites from individual Oireachtas Committees. Deputy Commissioner, Policing Operations, Shawna Coxon recently appeared before this Committee.”
Coxon spoke about a range of topics around security operations.
The Department of the Taoiseach did not respond to a request for comment.
The Department of Defence said: “Questions relating to the business and scheduling of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Defence and National Security are a matter for the Committee.
“In relation to last week’s scheduled meeting of the Committee, the Department of Defence did accept an invitation to attend the meeting. The Department remains available to attend whenever the Committee determines a date.”
