Joe O'Reilly: Gardaí need pay, pension recognition & resources
Joe O'Reilly addresses the chamber urging stronger support for An Garda Síochána, calling for body cameras, improved pay, pension recognition and a reinforced drug unit. He asks the Minister to respond on driving licences, collective bargaining access and the shift of administrative duties to civilian staff.
Support for An Garda Síochána
Joe O'Reilly praises An Garda Síochána as an unarmed force that polices by moral authority and the respect of communities. He welcomes recent moves such as body cameras while stressing the need to protect officers during riots, including armed support units where necessary.
Pay, recruitment and bargaining
O'Reilly argues pay must reflect the value placed on Gardaí to attract recruits and address staffing shortages. He proposes that Garda representatives should have a presence in collective bargaining - without undermining existing restrictions on industrial action - so their voice is heard during pay negotiations.
Pensions and service recognition
He highlights a gap in pension arrangements: officers who extend service by a decade or more receive no added recognition for the extra years and experience they bring. O'Reilly asks the Minister to consider adjustments to reflect extended service in final pension awards.
Administration and community policing
The speech notes progress in transferring administrative tasks to civilian staff, freeing Gardaí for front-line duties. O'Reilly underlines the value of community policing and the role of designated community officers in building local trust and relationships.
Drugs enforcement and undercover operations
Finally, O'Reilly calls for a stronger national drug unit and more undercover young Gardaí to tackle substance abuse affecting small towns and isolated villages. He urges targeted resourcing and increased numbers for undercover operations to confront the issue effectively.
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Thank you, László Comhairle. Can I say that one of the greatest successes of our independent Irish state has been An Garda Síochána, an unarmed force who have won the respect of the communities they serve and who police by moral authority, by the respect they've won and that. But that is not to suggest that we don't have to take cognizance of recent developments in this country in terms of riots recently and the protection of our Gardaí and the support of our Gardaí in very difficult situations and that's why the body cameras are to be welcomed, the point about the driving licenses is very pertinent and I'd like you to address that Minister and we have to look to every way of protecting our Garda Síochána and supporting them with armed support units etc in these riot situations. I want to say that a pay has been mentioned and the pay needs to reflect the value we put on our Gardaí and if we pay them well people will want to join and it will deal with the numbers issue. I do believe personally that the Gardaí should have a presence, they're well served by the AGSI, they're well served by the GRA, they're well served by the Garda Superintendents and Superintendents Association but what I would like to see is the Gardaí having a presence in collective bargaining. I think they should be there and they should have their voice there with every other union and I'd like the Minister to respond to that. That doesn't preclude restrictions around and the fact that they can't arbitrarily and collectively strike but they should have a presence at the pay negotiations. I also believe that there is an issue with pensions at the moment for our Gardaí and the issue is this, if our Gardaí serve the full term thankfully they are now allowed to serve on a longer term and that's a welcome development but they go on serving say another 10, 15 will roughly give or take 10 years normally extra and that's good and they're well fit to do it and they bring to the job great experience but when they ultimately get pension there's no reflection of those years, there's no extra recognition that they gave the state extra service, there's no extra recognition of the experience they brought to the fore and I'd like you to address that point maybe in your response Minister that I think we should be doing something on that. I think that the move to get administration dealt with by non-Gardaí has been important and I'd like you maybe Minister to say the degree to which we've achieved that till we get our Gardaí in non-administrative roles and administrative roles taken by lay people. I think we've advanced a good deal there I'd like you to elaborate on that and if there are lacunas there and I also think community policing and every Garda is a community police person and that's the strength of our Gardaí but at the same time designated community police people are very important for communities that they build those bridges, they build those relationships and lastly I as I finish Laskar Hurlock I'd say we need and I'd like you to maybe let us know Minister where we're at here, we need a very strong drug unit tragically at this time in the country, we need a number of undercover young Gardaí to go undercover to deal with substance abuse, with the drugs that are all too prevalent in the smallest and most isolated villages around our country and I think we need to put numbers and resources in there. Thank you and thank you Laskar.
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