Pa Daly (Kerry, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh gach éinne anseo. They are all very welcome.

I sense the frustration from all four of the groupings present. Both the AGSI and the GRA mentioned the increased pressures from far-right groups. I note what they said in relation to other issues, such as the Garda band, which we, in Tralee, would know well, and what they said in relation to travel and courthouses. It is all the more reason to improve and refurbish existing courthouses around the country as well, including Tralee courthouse. It has been left with only a lick of paint for the judge's room. That is about as much as has been done over the past 25 or 30 years.

I hear what Mr. Gallagher says. When we met gardaí and business leaders during the summer in the north-inner city of Dublin, we heard the HSE closed a lot of drug clinics, for example, in Blanchardstown. They were all funnelled in. Vulnerable people, some ex-prisoners and people with drug issues were funnelled in to the city centre but we see that around the country as well. In my own town, Tralee, there are five or six hostels. When the town councils were abolished, they were all concentrated, it seems to me, in provincial towns as opposed to being spread out around the county.

I note what Mr. Gallagher said in relation to prisons but before we expand the number of beds in prisons, you have to address the fact that, for instance, as we heard in a previous committee, there were two Merchants Quay-provided counsellors for the entirety of the Midlands Prison. That is as much as what has been done to help prisoners to prevent recidivism. Before any prison spaces are built, you have to deal with that.

Going back to what the GRA and the AGSI are saying, I sense their frustration in relation to the lack of progress on accountability by the Government and the Garda Reserve regulations. We and members of the Garda, particularly to increase presence in the city centre, were asking for those new regulations to be published. I understand they have been. Do the witnesses have any idea as to when they will be implementable in order that recruitment can begin to take place?

I also note what they are saying regarding a police service for the future. Has there been a response as to when they might be invited in to make their submissions, which need to be heard in order that these frustrations can be included in that?

I have another question in relation to the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland. The commission wanted gardaí to be taken away from non-core duties at the time, it is now five years ago, such as court presenting, transport or escort duty, coroners' courts etc. While civilianisation has taken place to some extent, could they expand on that because I understand it is really up to the gardaí themselves to do a lot of the computer work, such as inputting?

I spoke to a garda at the weekend who mentioned that while seven or eight divisions are using the investigation management system, there is resistance to it in a lot of stations in which it has not yet been introduced. I am told that is because it is quite cumbersome and will end up with more gardaí behind desks rather than doing what they want to be doing. Do the witnesses have any comment on that? It is something I hear from gardaí.

I also hear a lot from gardaí about excessive oversight and regulation, poor morale and lack of recognition. A statement that comes up often is that there is always somebody looking over their shoulders. I would appreciate a response on that.

If there is time, will the witnesses from the Garda representative organisations comment on whether enough is being done to recruit from new communities? While I welcome the increase in the allowable age of recruits to 50, I do not anticipate there will be many applicants at the upper end. Nevertheless, the change will mean the retirement age has to be extended to at least 62. Will the witnesses comment on that? Members of the Garda will have to be able stay in post long enough to pay off their mortgages and so on. I would appreciate answers to some of those questions.