Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the debate that has taken place in this House, to which I have listened, on the Public Sector Management (Appointment of Senior Members of the Garda Síochána) Bill 2014 introduced by Deputy Ross. It will come as no surprise to the Deputy to hear the Government is opposing the Bill.

As the House is aware, a comprehensive reform programme is being put in place that will restore public confidence in the work of the Garda Síochána and fully support the men and women of the police force who contribute daily to preserving law and order and protecting the security of the State. In the debate last night several Members quite rightly acknowledged the important contribution made by the Garda Síochána to society. Members also acknowledged the need for change. The Government has responded to the issues raised in the various recent reports by initiating a comprehensive programme of reform which includes the establishment of an independent Garda authority. That will change both culture and attitude. There will be an opportunity to discuss the issue with other stakeholders at the consultation event the Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, has convened in Farmleigh on Friday. The event promises some interesting discussions on reform of the justice system.

Those are important matters and not lightly decided. In that context and as a priority, work is under way in the Department of Justice and Equality on drafting the legislation for the new independent police authority. Part of the debate will be around the issue of the selection and appointment of candidates to senior Garda positions. The Bill proposed by Deputy Ross deals with the single issue of setting up structures which are mainly intended for appointments to senior positions in the Garda Síochána. His stand-alone proposal does not take account of the wider reform agenda that is under way. In particular, it ignores the setting up of the proposed independent Garda authority and its potential role in the process of appointing the most senior members of the Garda Síochána. In fact, the Bill, if enacted, would take away any opportunity for the authority to assume such a role in the short term.

It is vitally important that individual reforms, such as the way in which senior officers are appointed, are designed to fit properly with other elements of the comprehensive reform programme and not brought forward in a piecemeal manner. In addition to not taking account of the planned establishment of a new Garda authority, Deputy Ross seeks to pre-empt the outcome of extensive consultations under way, including but not limited to the extensive hearings and study trips being undertaken by the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, and the planned stakeholder consultation event, to which I alluded, that will take place this Friday in Farmleigh.

The Bill also puts the Dáil centre stage in relation to the appointment of the Garda Commissioner. It introduces a lengthy process for the appointment and, in fact, politicises the process. The Bill also has the potential to deter suitable candidates. The Government has indicated that an open competition will be held for the next appointment to the post of Garda Commissioner. The Minister, Deputy Fitzgerald, informed me that preparations will begin in July with the intention of making an appointment before the year end.

I wish to restate the Government's opposition to the Bill. It is untimely and inappropriate in the context of legislation which the Department of Justice and Equality is bringing forward as a matter of urgency to establish a new independent Garda authority. The Bill tries to pre-empt decisions on the important job of making appointments to senior positions in the Garda Síochána and therefore cannot be supported by the Government. The Government will not support a proposal which is premature and being put forward in isolation to other vital reforms.

I have listened to many of the contributions both tonight and last night, and the one thing that strikes me about all of them is that we are all determined that the politicisation of the Garda is brought to an end and that we have an independent Garda authority that ensures better management, as Deputy Catherine Murphy rightly said, of both the personnel and the skills available. The Garda authority is the place for that to happen. I do not accuse Deputy Ross of anything other than wishing to be helpful but his Bill on its own as a single entity will not give us the type of reform we all seek. We should wait and ensure the reform of the Garda Síochána is comprehensive, as Deputy Catherine Murphy rightly said, is far reaching and is the best that we can have.

See this speech in context