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Gardagate

Leo Varadkar on GardaGate: 'I've difficulty getting my head around it at the moment '

The Minister whose remarks kicked-off a series of controversies last week has been speaking this afternoon in Dublin.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NL5V6DItjec

TRANSPORT MINISTER LEO Varadkar has said he finds the garda issues that emerged over the last few days “confusing” and has admitted he has “difficulty getting my head around it at the moment”.

He said the whole situation is still evolving but that he hoped the Commission of Inquiry will establish the full facts, and welcomed a decision by the government to set up a garda authority.T

The Fine Gael minister said that Minister for Justice Alan Shatter will make a full statement and addressing concerns but declined to say if Shatter should withdraw remarks that the two garda whistleblowers did not cooperate with the penalty points investigation.

He said he “absolutely” had confidence in the Attorney General Marie Whelan and said that the Taoiseach has acted “extraordinary well” in dealing with the crisis.

Varadkar said he had a very productive meeting “one-to-one” with Shatter earlier this week and said the pair agreed a process to deal with road traffic issues but said there are “many other things happening here”.

Despite being asked repeatedly, the Minister declined to say whether he thought it was right that the Garda Commissioner retired yesterday.

Read: The Gardaí ‘did not do enough’ to engage with whistleblowers: Enda Kenny

LIVEBLOG: Taoiseach sent a Civil Servant to talk with Callinan

Catch up: Everything you need to know about GardaGate in one place >

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