Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

Since the formation of the State, Governments of every stripe have been slow, if not dilatory, in civilianising non-core policing functions. We have come late to the process compared with other European police jurisdictions. As the Hayes report into the Garda Síochána Act 2005 implementation review group stated:

We are concerned that the rate of civilianisation in the Garda Síochána is low by international standards and much lower than in many immediately comparable services. Trained and experienced Garda officers, whose expertise is badly needed in other activities, are being used on desk and other work which would be much more appropriately, and probably more efficiently done by civilian staff who do the same sort of jobs elsewhere in the public service. However, civilianisation now goes further. In modern policing the skills of analysts and statisticians are increasingly being used, and many of the new breed of scene of crime officers are civilian and are recruited at graduate level as specialists in these fields. In particular, criminal intelligence analysis is now at the core of modern policing. Traditional approaches to making sense of data in relation to crime and individual criminal investigations are no longer adequate.

In 2001, following negotiations with the Garda representative bodies, the Government approved the civilianisation of 496 posts in the Garda to be filled on a phased basis as gardaí occupying civilian posts in stations retired over a 20-year period. The programme drawn up provided for the civilianisation of these posts in the short, medium and long term, the transfer of the finance function from Garda district officers to civilian staff, and the transfer of civilian staff from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to the Garda.

Of the 496 posts identified in 2001 for civilianisation, 296 were administrative. The balance of the posts were specialist posts concerned with telecommunications, mapping, photography, etc. Furthermore, while 161 posts were identified for civilianisation in the short term, only 27 posts were to be civilianised in the period 2004 to 2006, with the remainder to be civilianised over the period up to 2021. Recently, the Garda representatives stated they want that process expedited. I welcome their change of heart and I look forward to discussing with the associations how the process of civilianisation can be expedited.

Additional Information not given on the floor of the House.

In this regard, it is worth noting that the direct replacement of individual gardaí doing clerical-administrative work in Garda stations has also been affected by the taking of equal pay cases by the Civil, Public and Services Union, CPSU. I am appealing those cases that were successful at the Equality Tribunal and expect that the appeal will be heard by the Labour Court before the summer.

In the meantime, I am pleased to report significant progress in the implementation of the civilianisation programme. I can also confirm in this context that there is no embargo on the recruitment of civilians to fill clerical roles carried out by members of the Garda. While there is a cap on overall Civil Service numbers, this has not been allowed to impact on the filling of administrative vacancies in the Garda.

The Government has at my request approved the transfer of 300 surplus posts from the Department of Agriculture and Food to my Department to assist with the Garda civilianisation programme. The first phase of this transfer has taken place in recent months with the establishment of the Garda information service centre, GISC, in Castlebar. When fully operational, this centre will employ more than 160 civilian staff. The GISC is yielding enormous benefits to the Garda. It frees up officers from having to return to the station following a crime event to enter data on PULSE. This means they can continue to carry out frontline policing duties while their reports are being typed up by their civilian colleagues. This scheme is in place in the southern division and will go nationwide later this year.

The GISC, an innovation which I instigated, is just one part of the civilianisation programme being implemented. Some 113 civilian finance officers have been appointed and are carrying out the district finance officer duties in every Garda division that were hitherto performed by gardaí. A number of other posts that were previously held by members of the force have been, or are in the process of being, civilianised. Discussions are under way with staff interests on the implementation of a key recommendation in the civilianisation report — the transfer of civilian staff to the direct control of the Garda Commissioner — a reform that was legislated for in the Garda Síochána Act 2005. This transfer is due to take place on 1 October.

However, it should be borne in mind that the 2001 civilianisation report was agreed at a point in time. It represented the conclusions of the group established to consider this issue several years ago in light of the prevailing circumstances and the consensus view of the staff and management interests at that time. It cannot be the final word on the matter. Since the report was written, a significant number of civilians have been recruited to work in the Garda doing tasks that were not even envisaged in 2001. Given that this has happened in the space of less than five years, it is inevitable that further significant changes in the operational environment of the Garda will occur over the next 15 years. The force is, by virtue of the Garda Síochána Act 2005, undergoing a programme of reform that is unprecedented in its 84-year history. It is clear that significantly increased civilianisation of the force, which would optimise its capacity to provide the frontline policing for which it has been trained, is a public policy imperative and one to which I am committed to advancing significantly on my watch.

The civilianisation report provides an important point of departure in progressing civilianisation, but for the reasons outlined, it cannot be the final word on the issue. For this reason, a joint implementation group, drawn from management in the Garda and my Department, has been established to review the report in the light of developments in the intervening years and to plan and develop a comprehensive timetable for the ongoing implementation of civilianisation, both in the context of the report and otherwise. I expect this group will give the civilianisation programme a new impetus and I look forward to the outcome of its deliberations.

As regards the Garda Síochána reserve, section 15 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 provides for the appointment of civilian reserve members of the Garda. I am very impressed with the comprehensive nature of the proposals for the Garda reserve made by the Garda Commissioner. The proposals envisage a thoroughly trained reserve with carefully selected powers and duties, working under the supervision of members of the Garda. I have met each of the Garda representative associations to discuss the Commissioner's proposals before I proceed to draw up the necessary regulations for Government approval. Further discussions will be held with the associations under the Garda conciliation scheme. I also intend to present the regulations in draft form to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights for the consideration of the committee. The additional resource of a well trained civilian reserve with carefully selected powers and duties will significantly increase the capacity of the Garda to combat crime and disorder, and provide the public with the security and safety they rightly demand.

In the Revised Estimates for 2006, €1.28 million has been provided in subhead A10 of the Garda Síochána Vote for costs associated with the establishment of the reserve. The full extent of resource requirements relating to the Garda reserve will be established in due course during the implementation process and adequate provision will be made in the Estimates process. I will deal with the establishment of the reserve in more detail in my reply to Priority QuestionNo. 5.

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