Mr. John Devitt:

I am not aware of any police force anywhere in the world that does not have an intelligence function. The PSNI and the London Metropolitan Police Service, to give two examples, have an intelligence function. All forces run covert human intelligence sources, CHIS, programmes, and all have a function in deterring or investigating terrorism. The two concepts are inseparable, just as they are for the military.

That said, it is important not to use the security function of any police service as an excuse not to expose that service to adequate democratic oversight and accountability. Most parliaments, including those in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, have democratic oversight, inadequate as it might be, of their intelligence services. The coupling of national security with policing has been used by this and previous Administrations to exempt An Garda Síochána from adequate oversight and investigation by oversight bodies such as GSOC.