Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach of the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality, Deputy Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin, who played a very proactive role in compiling this report. I also thank the other members of the joint committee for their input and welcome those who are present. The report was primarily based on engagements the committee had with An Garda Síochána, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, the Garda Inspectorate and the Policing Authority.

These discussions and engagements were invaluable in gaining a better understanding of the existing oversight and procedures within and outside the operation of the country's police force. There are many strengths and weaknesses currently being practised and the report addresses these in good measure.

The report and its recommendations should be considered in the current environment of the ongoing efforts to reform An Garda Síochána following a number of recent controversies. I was pleased to hear contributors stress that An Garda Síochána is first and foremost a police service and its primary objective is to serve and assist the people of this State. It is of fundamental importance that the focus of the Garda charter is on communities and community interaction. Public confidence in upholding the law of our country and the Garda Síochána's role in developing proper public confidence will be critical into the future in the context of what has happened in recent months and years.

The report is intended to ensure there are robust oversight structures and mechanisms in place which will ultimately help gardaí to carry out their duties in an effective way and ensure they are receiving the necessary supports to do so. However, ink on a page alone will not achieve this. The onus is now on the Minister to ensure these recommendations are implemented. It will be to the detriment of the hard working men and women of An Garda Síochána if this is just another report left to gather dust. The shelves of Government Buildings are already groaning under the weight of inaction. I sincerely hope this report will not end up on a shelf.

The meetings with the four agencies were beneficial, although I concede I am still unclear in some areas, including where one agency’s remit ends and the next one begins. There seems to me be a crossover and some grey areas. Some of the recommendations aim to remedy this. I was surprised to learn from my own meetings with the Policing Authority on the issue of its engagement. In my view, it should be critical engagement. There should be greater separation between the Policing Authority and senior management of An Garda Síochána. In saying that, I am not personalising anyone within or An Garda Síochána or the Policing Authority. A proper oversight mechanism must be such that the auditor or anyone who provides oversight does not have a collaborative, constructive input into the making of a policing plan. In my view, its role should be to analyse and engage critically on policing plans and then to bring those plans to senior management who will then bring them to the policing authority. It was mentioned that the issue in this regard is one of time and efficiency. In my view, it would be better if the Policing Authority had a greater degree of separation and oversight competencies such that it does not involve itself in the act of making a police plan because were it to be the scribe of a plan it would be difficult for it to provide adequate oversight of it.

Many of the recommendations are aimed at freeing up resources. We learned that one in five complaints dealt with by GSOC are minor in nature and could be more effectively dealt with in-house by Garda line management. It is also recommended that mediation be more widely used, where appropriate, to resolve disputes quickly. I welcome the Minister's statement in regard to the additional powers to be provided by way of amendment of Part 4 of the Garda Síochána Act. I hope this can be progressed expeditiously through the House. As a committee we were all agreed on the need to for GSOC to be empowered and resourced to play its role as set out in the legislative framework.

The provisions in the Garda Síochána Act in regard to appointments within the service need to be commenced to allow the Policing Authority to appoint Garda to senior rank. I know this matter is also being progressed. Promoting young officers who have shown promise in their fields is crucial to maintaining high policing standards. This is especially true in the current climate of retirement of many senior officers from An Garda Síochána.

I also welcome the recommendations relating to whistleblowers, which were suggested by members across the committee, including my party colleague, Deputy Jim O’Callaghan who will be in the House later to speak on this issue. In all organisations and institutions, transparency is paramount and whistleblowers play an important role in this regard. Gardaí should feel confident to raise matters of concern and such practice plays an invaluable role in improving accountability and enhancing services to the public. Officers who raise concerns should be supported, not inhibited, by management and colleagues. It should be a matter of pride for a garda to know that he or she and his or her colleagues are doing their best to serve the people.

During the hearings, I raised important issues around helping gardaí on a day-to-day basis as they tackle ruthless criminals who are well-resourced and use the latest technologies to evade the Garda. The need for modern technologies was also recognised by the Garda Inspectorate during its appearance before the committee. Gardaí have had many recent successes in combatting criminals and their empires. It is no coincidence this has come about because extra resources and personnel have been deployed in sophisticated, intelligence-led operations. The recent high profile drugs seizures and arrests in relation to the ongoing feud in Dublin are to be commended. However, further success is dependent on gardaí remaining one step ahead of these subversives. The most up to date technologies need to be made available. I would like to see greater roll-out of automatic number plate recognition, ANPR, technology. I do not believe this is being as progressed as quickly as it should be, although I acknowledge that allocations in this regard have increased. We are way behind a number of countries, including the UK, in relation to ANPR technology. This must be to the fore in tackling many issues. As I said, this technology and the roll-out of other IT infrastructure will greatly assist the Garda in their investigations. I have previously raised that issue with the Tánaiste. In addition, there is no reason why gardaí should not be utilising real time information on their mobile phones. Specialist units, focussing on the rapidly developing world of cyber-crime, also need to be set up.

I again call on the Tánaiste to ensure that officers have the necessary resources to continue to keep our streets safe. Additional budgetary allocations should not be a once-off response to the ongoing feuds in Dublin and elsewhere but a continual funding model to tackle serious crime. Other important measures going forward include the hiring of civilians with appropriate skillsets to allow increased visibility of Garda on the streets and enhancing the role of community policing teams. Unfortunately, owing to years of cuts and disregard the morale amongst many gardaí is now very low. Most worryingly, young gardaí appear to be among the most disenchanted. These are the officers who should be the most excited and invigorated in their work. We all have a lot of work to do to rectify this and I hope adoption of this report will go a way towards this goal.

I thank the Chairman of the Joint Committee on Justice and Equality for his work in relation to this report. The committee has an exciting work programme this year. I look forward to hearing the contributions to this debate of other members of the committee.

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