A report into the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan Bombings - in which 33 people were killed - has found no evidence to establish collusion relating to winding down of the garda investigations into the atrocities.
The commission says it has based its conclusions on the evidence, documentation and all the relevant submissions it received.
The commission says it was hampered by inadequate information, including the loss or destruction of an unquantifiable amount of garda documentation relevant to the investigations.
It also says that, having reviewed the evidence available to it, the commission identified only one lead in which a significant number of inquiries could have been carried out in this jurisdiction.
The group representing relatives of victims of the bombings has demanded an apology from the gardaí over the way they handled their investigation.
The Justice for the Forgotten group claimed there had been 'gross systems failures' which allowed the files and evidence relating to the biggest mass murder in Ireland in modern times to go missing.
At a press conference this evening the group did not rule out seeking a Tribunal of Inquiry into the bombings.
The long-awaited report was published this evening by the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, and was given to relatives of the victims before it was made public.
There have never been any prosecutions in relation to the bombings, which turned out to be worst single day of the Troubles.
There have been persistent suggestions of collusion between British security forces and the loyalist paramilitaries.
An inquiry by Mr Justice Henry Barron reported in 2003 that it was likely that members of the UDR and RUC knew of preparations to bomb Dublin and Monaghan, but that there was no evidence of collusion between the bombers and the authorities in Northern Ireland.
The Barron Report was also highly critical of the garda investigation into the bombings, which was wound down very quickly and failed to follow up a number of leads, as well as the disappearance of important documentation.
A Commission of Inquiry under barrister Paddy McEntee was set up to investigate these matters.
In a statement this evening, Mr Ahern said that he would now seek agreement with the Opposition parties on a date for a full Dáil debate on the report and on the issue of collusion during the Troubles.
Mr Ahern expressed serious concern at the shortcomings and omissions - mainly during the 1970s - identified in the report, and said he has initiated a full review of systems and procedures in the relevant departments and agencies.
The Taoiseach told the Irish Independent last week that while the report would help our understanding of what happened, it was unlikely to help in the area of prosecutions.
Government wants privilege waived
The Government has sent letters today to the British Government, the Garda authorities and the Defence Forces requesting that they waive legal privilege over certain documents mentioned, but not published, in the McEntee report.
In Chapter 11 of his report, Mr McEntee said he was unable to report on one of his terms of reference, relating to why the gardaí did not follow up information relating to a man who stayed in the Four Courts Hotel between 15 and 17 May, 1974, and his contacts with the UVF.
Mr McEntee said despite having spent a lot of time and effort in investigating this aspect, he was unable to report on it, and that the Taoiseach had been made aware of the legal difficulties involved.
In his own statement, Mr Ahern said he had not seen the relevant confidential documentation as it remained subject to legal privilege, and that the Government has decided to seek voluntary withdrawal of claims of privilege from those agencies, here and in Britain, who provided confidential material to the commission.
