Trevor Ó Clochartaigh (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In line with the need for the authority to be truly independent, the Minister should not be permitted to appoint the deputy Garda Commissioner. The role of the authority under this Bill in recommending the appointment is not strong enough and this should be amended to allow the authority to directly appoint the deputy Garda Commissioner. If the deputy Garda Commissioner is to be accountable to the Garda Commissioner, who is accountable to the authority, the authority must have effective mechanisms to oversee the appointment and removal of the deputy Garda commissioners. We reserve the right to bring forward amendments in this regard on Report Stage.