Mick Wallace (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Minister referred to the police authority. Based on the heads of the Bill, there is a strong fear that it will not be as strong as it could be and Government and ministerial influence will remain very powerful. The policing authority is almost seen as a body advising the Minister, and this role is listed as one of its functions, which is concerning. It leaves the Minister with the power to veto all policy and strategy plans, which kills any notion of the authority's independence. We have previously expressed reservations about the manner in which the chairman was appointed. There was not much transparency about the process. It would have been a good start for the policy authority if the appointment of the chairman had been perceived to be much more independent that it appeared to us.

The idea of an independent police authority is to provide more democratic accountability and it should be a way for the citizens to hold the Garda to account in a more direct and democratic way. More representation in the body would be vital. The idea that the Government would be able to pull the strings of the police authority and have a strong influence over how it operates goes against the principle of what an independent police authority should be. We need an independent buffer between the Minister for Justice and Equality and the Garda Commissioner in order to avoid the sort of problems that arose last year when the former Minister, Deputy Shatter, was so closely tied to the Garda Commissioner that he could not abandon or criticise the Commissioner, no matter what he found. An independent police authority that was not being pulled around by the Government would provide a buffer and strengthen our policing in a dramatic way. It would be very important.

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