Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being in the House. The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors has expressed some concern about the move or the direction in which we are moving. We are clearly going to move inspectors from their supervisory role into a management role as we move into this. That is not their function. We need supervision on the ground using both our sergeants and inspectors. I ask the Minister to reconsider that particular part. I am under pressure for time and I also want to deal with Part 6 of the Bill which deals with GSOC. There is some concern that some part of Part 6 may be unconstitutional. The Commissioner has made a submission to the Minister. The representative associations, certainly the GRA, are very much behind that submission. From that point of view I ask the Minister to adopt the Commissioner's submission. In regard to stakeholders, there is no mention of the GRA in the Bill in regard to the function or the position of the representative associations.

We had a reorganisation of the Defence Forces in 2012 and we are still living the horror of that. As we move through this Bill, amendments will be brought in on behalf of the representative associations who are the people on the ground expected to implement the wishes of the Government. From that perspective I ask that we do not dismiss them for the sake of dismissing them, but that we go through those amendments. If they are to be ruled out, or if the Minister decides she cannot bring them in, to provide a rationale and explain why she cannot accept amendments that are being brought in by the people who are on the ground. I will have plenty to say on Committee Stage.