‘No muzzling of whistleblowers’ says City Council

Galway City Council officials have refuted claims that staff are being ‘muzzled’ to stop whistleblowing in the local authority.

Acting City Chief Executive Joe O’Neill told councillors this week: “Nobody in here is muzzling employees.”

His statement came after Billy Cameron (Labour) queried why remarks he made at last month’s local authority meeting – in relation to Council whistleblower Julie Grace – had not been minuted.

He said staff are being muzzled in the Council and this is not the way to go. He felt that in the interest of transparency, openness and accountability, his comments should have been recorded.

Cllr Cameron had said that regarding the Bríd Cummins case (a former Council tenant who took her own life before being evicted), issues were raised and resulting from that, an employee of the Council ended up without a job [after ‘whistleblowing’].

“It would be on my conscience if the minutes did not reflect what I said; I would ask for more detailed minutes,” said Cllr Cameron.

Cllr Padraig Conneely (FG) said Cllr Cameron was referring to Julie Grace, the former Council employee who wrote the book ‘Abuse of Power: Because Councils Can’ – she subsequently won a High Court action against the Council.

Cllr Frank Fahy (FG) said he was disappointed the minutes had not recorded what was said at the previous meeting – he produced an article from the Galway City Tribune and said it had been reported on on Galway Bay fm.

“I’ve read the book and found it very interesting. I would encourage other councillors to go out and read it. You’d be shocked. It gives a great insight into what goes on in the City Council and taxpayers’ money used to shaft someone out of their jobs.

“At the end of the day, a woman lost her life. That’s not acceptable and the minutes should be amended. I’m not happy with the minutes as they’re recorded; they seem to be selective,” said Cllr Fahy.

Mr O’Neill said it is not practical that the Council write out every single thing that was said.

“There’s no point Cllr Fahy quoting another account [the media]; that’s their version of what happened on the night,” he said.

“It’s correct,” several councillors responded.

“Nobody in here is muzzling employees. It’s well worth the time reading everything in the Protected Disclosures Act. Nobody in here is interested in muzzling what people have to say,” said Mr O’Neill.

Cllr Catherine Connolly (Ind) said she was Mayor at the time of the Bríd Cummins affair, and she did not recall any protests from Fine Gael at the time, but there was a motion to remove her from office.

She added that a discussion on minutes of a meeting was not the appropriate to raise the matter as it was an insult to Ms Cummins’ family and the “terrible suffering they have unjustly endured”.