Mr. Drew Harris:

We have recently promoted 172 people to the rank of sergeant, so the vacancies that existed at that time were filled. We will soon have a list of inspectors and we hope there will be over 100 promotions there, in terms of promoting sergeants to inspectors. There will be a further pull through of promotions to sergeant. One of the concentrations we have in the organisation is at front-line supervision, that is, sergeant-inspector supervision. There is an emphasis on that. It certainly has been emphasised to us in the various reports that have been written by the inspectorate, the authority and the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland. We take supervision very seriously. Supervision is essential in terms of the behaviours and standards we expect in the organisation. I am fortunate to arrive at a time when these gaps, which have opened up and are considerable, are starting to be filled. That makes a difference. In lots of ways, it creates optimism within the organisation. It was a nice and positive day for the organisation when I made the announcement. It was very positive then, several weeks later, to see newly promoted sergeants on their first or second day in their new posts.