Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House and thank him for bringing the Bill before us. As the Fine Gael Leader of the House, we will be supporting this Government Bill. As Senator Boyhan rightly said, it is about ensuring that we have the same age limit for external candidates and that they are not barred from being able to apply and be interviewed for the position.

The next Garda Commissioner is pivotal in terms of the reform of An Garda Síochána. It is fair to say that the Garda has suffered in the eyes of the public for a variety of reasons but it is important now that we restore that morale.

As the first female Commissioner, Nóirín O'Sullivan deserves our thanks and praise for the role she played. I always found her to be a very amicable and fair-minded person to engage with who did her best and wanted to see An Garda Síochána advance. Equally, we are very fortunate with the men and women who serve in An Garda Síochána in our towns and cities who do Trojan work to protect but also build a sense of community. It is now opportune that we bring reform to An Garda Síochána.

I welcome the fact that we will have an open, international recruitment campaign. I welcome the age barrier being changed. It is a pity the 5 ft 9 in. height barrier could not have been changed over time. Many of us who are of a smaller height might have been considered for An Garda Síochána. I always found that to be discriminatory and unfair because the many of us who might have considered applying were precluded from doing so because of the height restriction. That was wrong, and I am glad that has changed.