Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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158. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the discussions that were held with her Department by An Garda Síochána in the past four years in relation to the requirement to have a knowledge of Irish for recruitment to the force and for promotion to certain ranks within An Garda Síochána; the steps she intends taking to ensure that An Garda Síochána can provide services through Irish to Irish speakers in and outside the Gaeltacht; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [6333/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The Deputy will be aware that I received Government approval in December 2021 for new regulations amending the Garda Síochána (Admissions and Appointments) Regulations 2013, in advance of a new Garda recruitment competition to commence this year. The new Regulations contain technical amendments to reflect changes in legislation, and also to revise the language requirement for applicants.

For the 2022 and subsequent recruitment competitions, applicants to An Garda Síochána must, as previously, be proficient in English or Irish.  However, the requirement to be proficient in a second language has been removed.

The Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland noted that diversity is a vital asset to any organisation that seeks to be innovative and adaptable.

I am informed that a team within An Garda Síochána carried out extensive research into barriers to recruitment and inclusivity, as well as international research regarding benchmarking against other police services. I am further informed this that research identified a number of potential barriers to recruitment, such as educational attainment, language proficiency and nationality. I understand An Garda Síochána engaged directly with diverse communities also, and again the previous requirement for two languages was raised as a difficulty.

The requirement for proficiency in only one language, which must be either English or Irish, will remove any potential disadvantage for people who have not had the opportunity to achieve proficiency in two languages, but who still wish to serve as members of An Garda Síochána.

I can inform the Deputy that promotions to the ranks of Sergeant and Inspector in An Garda Síochána are governed by the Garda Síochána (Appointment to the Ranks of Inspector and Sergeant) Regulations 2021.

The new Regulations mark a fundamental change by providing that promotion competitions to the supervisory ranks of Sergeant and Inspector, which previously had been managed internally by An Garda Síochána, will for the first time be conducted under the remit of the Public Appointments Service (PAS).

The Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) requires that I, as Minister for Justice, consult with the Garda Commissioner and Policing Authority prior to requesting Government approval to bring Regulations concerning the operational matters of An Garda Síochána into effect. The Regulations were finalised following extensive engagement between my Department, the Public Appointments Service and An Garda Síochána, and in consultation with the Policing Authority and the Garda Associations.

Development of the Regulations was informed by the 2015 Garda Síochána Inspectorate report “Changing Policing in Ireland”, which recommended establishing new promotion and selection processes, and by the 2015 audit of the Commission for Public Service Appointments which found that the Garda Síochána (Promotion) Regulations 2006 were outdated and needed to be reviewed.

The previous Regulations governing promotion to the Sergeant rank required candidates to have passed a proficiency test in the Irish language. As the Deputy will be aware, entrants to An Garda Síochána already undergo extensive training, including training for proficiency in Irish. Following consultations between my Department, An Garda Síochána, the Policing Authority and the Public Appointments Service, it was agreed that achievement of the 50% grade in the Oral Competency Examination in Irish was not an essential requirement for candidates to be eligible for promotion to the ranks of Sergeant or Inspector. This is also in keeping with best practice for other promotional competitions across the public service.

An Garda Síochána remains committed to the Irish language and studies in the Irish language will remain part of the Policing BA delivered to all trainee Gardaí in the Garda College, Templemore. A new Irish Language Strategy has been developed by An Garda Síochána and will be launched early in 2022. The Strategy aims to strengthen Irish language services within An Garda Síochána and ensure compliance with statutory language obligations.

I am informed by An Garda Síochána that a Directive issued in 2018 to ensure that only members with the appropriate Irish language skills would transfer to Gaeltacht stations, with a view to increasing the number of bilingual personnel in these stations.  An Irish Language Proficiency Panel (ILPP) has also been established under the same directive, and includes members recruited through the Irish Language Stream as well as members who wish to be transferred to Gaeltacht stations, having obtained the requisite result in the Irish oral assessment.

One of the Irish Language Strategy goals is to increase the number of members on the ILPP by establishing a working group to examine incentives for members to request a transfer to Gaeltacht stations.