Maurice Hayes (Independent)

There was a time when I hoped I would not see another cop in my life, because I had spent five years examining police forces in various places. I welcome the Bill, however. I congratulate the Minister on tackling this enormous task with great energy and vision. The passage of the Bill has been marked by his willingness to engage in sensible debate and his openness to the suggestions made by Senators. Legislation such as this represents a very important development in a democratic society and it represents or at least reflects the importance of policing.

All we have now are words on paper; the important thing is implementation. I know the Minister will push for it. Sometimes people do not realise the importance of training and the resources needed therefor and I join other Senators in stating that the necessary resources should be made available to the Minister.

The training and recruitment of gardaí stands comparison with recruitment and training of police officers anywhere else in the world. The Minister's problem may be the training of people other than new recruits to the Garda. One of the most demoralising things is for a young, enthusiastic recruit to come out of the depot and go back into a station only to be met by hoary headed old people who say, "That is all right son, that is for the books." In changing attitudes, particularly to community policing, and dealing with policing committees, considerable retraining is necessary. I recommend this to the Minister and hope he is given the necessary resources. I congratulate him and his officials on the Bill and wish them well.