Results 1-20 of 103 for garda speaker:Robbie Gallagher

Seanad: Community Safety and Investment: Motion [Private Members] (28 Feb 2024)

Robbie Gallagher: ..., any town or village in the country. Much reference has been made, and rightly so, to highlight again the Dublin riots which occurred back last November and which were truly shocking. I thank the gardaí for their bravery that night because it was a horrible scene. The way the gardaí conducted themselves deserves great mention and I commend them on it. I also commend other...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence: General Scheme of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2023: Discussion (20 Feb 2024)

Robbie Gallagher: ...I pose a few questions. The road we are going down is a very dangerous one. It is a very dangerous precedent to be setting. As was said earlier, if it is the Defence Forces today, will it be the Garda tomorrow, or another aspect of the public service? The old adage "If it's not broken don't fix it" springs to mind here. Going back through the past 34 or 35 years, both RACO and PDFORRA...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Garda Síochána (Recording Devices) (Amendment) Bill: Discussion (13 Feb 2024)

Robbie Gallagher: ...for coming here this afternoon. It has been very useful, albeit somewhat confusing, from my perspective. I am assuming that the starting point for us all here is that we would like to give gardaí every assistance possible in the investigation of crime. I think we are all on the same page in that regard. That said, we want to do it in a way that is lawful and completely above board....

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (13 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...have implications for it. Would the likes of the events that took place in this city three weeks ago today have implications for an approved plan relating to resources, policing models and how An Garda Síochána carries out its duties? How would circumstances reach a point whereby a plan would need to be looked at again and have something stitched on to it or taken from it? How...

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (13 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...measured, gets done" springs to mind. From time to time, resources will be key to implement a plan. In the case of an extreme event, for example, where there may be a dispute going on within An Garda Síochána, whether that be what we experienced previously with the blue flu or where sometimes, Garda members may be involved in a dispute whereby overtime that may be on offer may...

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (13 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...capital plan. Like others who come from a rural part of the county, I am concerned about us getting our fair share of the cake when it comes to capital projects. With that in mind, a number of Garda stations are currently lying idle throughout the country. I know that four or five miles from where I currently reside in Clontibret village, just outside Monaghan town, a Garda station has...

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (12 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...of what Senator Chambers said. This is wide-ranging legislation that makes a great deal of change. The Senator’s specific point on the security aspect of appointments at the highest level of An Garda Síochána is well made and deserves attention. We are very fortunate that we have people of the highest calibre and of great intelligence serving within the ranks of An...

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (12 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I concur with the sentiments of the previous speakers regarding the merits of the Garda Reserve. I noted from comments at a previous debate in this Chamber last week that the Minister indicated that moves were afoot perhaps in the first quarter of 2024, and she might correct me if I am wrong, regarding a recruitment campaign in relation to getting people to sign up for the Garda Reserve....

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (12 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...is trying to do work in this area. Where a person is working or trying to plan a future job, it is important to have clarity so that if he or she begins the process of becoming a member of An Garda Síochána today, he or she will be guaranteed to go through it within a set period, subject to all the relevant steps that must be undertaken, including the fitness test. I am aware...

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (12 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: Living locally would allow the members of the Garda the flexibility to be able to take part in this way.

Seanad: Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023: Committee Stage (Resumed) (12 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: My colleague, Senator Joe O'Reilly, and I are conscious that in the area we share, new Garda members are not coming to Cavan town or to Monaghan town. It has been a while since the stations in those towns have had new recruits. This is an issue that people are conscious of and it would be nice to know that some of the people passing out now would be heading to the country, so to speak, as...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: .... Accusations have been levelled at her this week about her lack of contact or engagement with the communities affected in the wake of the riots. Would she like to address that? As regards Garda resources, this is all about boots on the street. We all want to see more of that, and I welcome the intakes into Templemore. The cynic in me, however, would wonder about bringing a class in...

Seanad: An tOrd Gnó - Order of Business (6 Dec 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I know the Senator attended the last meeting of justice committee with the Garda Commissioner and contributed to it. Perhaps there might be an opportunity for her to address that particular issue at the meeting tomorrow. Senator Lombard talked about knackeries and the fact that they are closed at the moment, which is a very serious issue for the farming community. There is a dispute...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I welcome the witnesses and thank the Commissioner for attending today's hearing. At the outset, like others, I express my sincere gratitude to the members of the Garda who had to deal with what they had to deal with last Thursday. Would the Commissioner say that there was a failure of management of the situation last Thursday evening?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...level of violence that occurred, but is it fair to say that based on events of the last year to 18 months, we could see the level of activity begin to ratchet-up? Is it fair to say that perhaps Garda management should have been more aware of the potential for this to escalate? I am not talking about the level that it escalated to last Thursday. Is it fair to say that perhaps we should...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: Absolutely. Is it fair to say that the Garda will be depending on resources from outside the capital to beef-up the strength of the force in Dublin? By extension, is that not going to result in a situation where other parts of the country are going to be left short, as happened last Thursday as far away as in my own county of Monaghan, where resources had to travel down to assist? By...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I ask the Commissioner to comment on the need, in my opinion, for an independent body to assess what happened last Thursday, with a view to making recommendations to Garda management going forward.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I thank the Commissioner for his answers. The Commissioner used the term "chill factor" when it comes to gardaí using force in order to defend themselves and members of the general public. Would he say that perhaps more support and guidance needs to be given to members in situations like that? Why are we having this conversation today? Surely members of the Garda should be under no...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (29 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: ...and retention, then we will have a bigger problem coming down the road. The reality is that there are serious issues in this regard. I speak as someone who served nine years as a member of An Garda Síochána, stationed in Monaghan. The attractiveness of the job back then as opposed to its unattractiveness today is a big problem. Unless we seriously address that, we will have a...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Policing Matters: Discussion (Resumed) (7 Nov 2023)

Robbie Gallagher: I welcome the witnesses and thank them for the work the Garda does on behalf of us all in increasingly difficult circumstances. Our appreciation is heartfelt. I wish to ask a number of questions. The Commissioner mentioned the new operating model. In my neck of the woods of Cavan and Monaghan, there are deep concerns among members of the community and gardaí. Changes have been...