Mr. Drew Harris:

I thank the Chairman and committee members for the invitation to meet them. I look forward to working with the joint committee in a spirit of accountability, openness and transparency and a way that will improve the policing service we provide for society. I have supplied written comments, on which I want to enlarge somewhat. One of the themes on which I will pick up is how policing is changing, as identified by the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland.

Policing is moving towards dealing with harm and vulnerability, as set out clearly by the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland. It is a recognised phenomenon across Europe. The commission has set out the next steps for us as an organisation. It will be a roadmap for us in the next three to five years for the policing service we will provide. Within it, we need to have an understanding of the demands placed on us, how they might change in the next three to five years and how we will deploy our resources and what they will look like in terms of the people we employ and their skills to deliver a policing service. These are big management problems, with which many police services are wrestling, but there are two particular strengths we have which I should highlight in the context of how policing is changing. The first is that we still retain a strong link with local communities. That has been very evident to me and we wish to retain and strengthen it. As I visited Garda stations and offices throughout the country, I met high quality people. It is clear from our own cultural audit that they, too, are fully committed to providing an excellent policing service for the people of Ireland and are determined to do so.

I have arrived against the backdrop of the report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland, our own modernisation and renewal programme and cultural audit, as well as the report of the Charleton tribunal of two weeks ago and the tribunal's recommendations. The first three documents set out what has to be done and a roadmap for how that work should be taken on. I have read the Charleton tribunal's report and the last few pages, in particular, seem to have been written directly for me. They are a clarion call for action. We will take action to reform the policing service provided and reassure the people of Ireland that we are here to protect them and do our very best for them as public servants and that we are fully determined to do so.

Compared with any of my contemporaries, I am fortunate that I have arrived at a time of investment. There is considerable investment in An Garda Síochána. It is an organisation that is growing, which is almost unique among law enforcement agencies. There is a responsibility on me and the rest of the organisation to use these resources efficiently and effectively and in such a way that will also promote confidence in the policing service we provide and An Garda Síochána. That is important in the behaviours we exhibit both inside and outside the organisation. At every opportunity I emphasise the importance of the code of ethics. It is a living document which is there to guide us on the behaviours we expect internally but, more importantly, the public expects of us and which we must live and demonstrate to them every single day.

For my part, I am motivated by public service. Policing is my public service. I applied and have been appointed. I am here to serve and lead An Garda Síochána in the next stage of its development, all with a view to making sure we are doing our very best to protect the people of Ireland, the vulnerable in particular.