Taoiseach Enda Kenny has confirmed senior gardaí have made “protected disclosures” to the Minister for Justice alleging a campaign by Garda management to undermine the professional and personal reputation of Garda whistleblowers.

Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said the Irish Examiner reported that a senior officer alleged that senior Garda management instigated a “character assassination attack” and the “campaign essentially involved dissemination of texts across a range of gardaí” and undermining their character.

Mr Martin said there was a protected disclosures or whistleblowing process but “we are looking at activity here that goes beyond that and cuts to the very heart of how a police force should be operating”.

Intelligence file

Mr Kenny said he was aware of the media reports “claiming that attempts were made to undermine a Garda whistleblower through encouraging officers to attack his character, creating an intelligence file on him, monitoring his activities on the Garda Pulse system, making false allegations about his character and briefing elements of the media and selected politicians in a similar vein”.

The Taoiseach said he had not seen the correspondence or the newspaper report “but it may well be there are matters here beyond what would be a normal Disc analysis or investigation”.

Mr Martin said that while the issue had gone to the Minister for Justice “it demands a fairly dramatic response from the Government”.

The Taoiseach told him that the Tánaiste had received correspondence from gardaí under the Protected Disclosures Act 2014 and the communication was now being considered.

He said Ms Fitzgerald had referred the issue of best practice for how whistleblowers are dealt with, to the Policing Authority “which will be reporting on this matter when it has concluded its own work”.

He said she will consider how best to proceed and take whatever action deemed appropriate.