Ms Helen Hall:

The Policing Authority has an oversight role in this regard, but the system deals with these individual cases. Obviously, I would not even have the information to comment on an individual case. I am concerned as well that something is up here. To be fair, there has been a recognition in the Department of Justice, GSOC and An Garda Síochána that significant work needs to be done and there must be an improvement in this regard. I heard some of the interactions with our GSOC colleagues this morning, when they were talking about this aspect and the new legislation. A change is needed to the disciplinary regulations, and it is something the Department of Justice is considering. This is overdue to simplify the system.

One of the areas we examine, and one of the areas of emphasis for our work this year, concerns what the Garda do. Talking in the broadest terms possible, I refer to any information or third-party recommendations that come to the attention of members of the force and how they would act on them. Deputy Commissioner Coxon is doing some work from the Garda's perspective on how the force can be assured that things are happening fast enough in this context. I refer to something like a complaint or a grievance, and whether that is being handled. I comment on this point because we had concerns, in the context of our clearance processes over the years, that sometimes the handling of internal procedures was inefficient. Much work remains to be done in this area. We want attention to be given to this matter, and we have already discussed with the Garda Commissioner how this aspect can be improved. That said, we would not know sometimes if a person undertakes a judicial review of a process, because that is his or her prerogative, and it can take time. I point that out just to be fair.