New law allowing garda use of bodycams to go to Cabinet ‘within weeks’

A new law allowing gardaí to use body cameras is expected to be brought to Cabinet within weeks, Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has said.

She was speaking as she officially opened a new Garda headquarters for specialist units, Walter Scott House, with Commissioner Drew Harris.

Friday was Ms McEntee’s last day in work before taking maternity leave.

There is expected to be a reshuffle of ministers when Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Leo Varadkar switch jobs on December 17th.

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Ms McEntee said she has made “no secret” of her wish to return to the justice brief after maternity leave but said it was a decision “above my head” and she expects to find out what will happen at the same time as her ministerial colleagues.

Asked about the planned legislation allowing for Garda bodycams, Ms McEntee said it was a priority for her department.

She said there have been delays to the Digital Recording Bill, which would allow for the cameras to be used, but she expects the legislation will be brought to Cabinet in the coming weeks.

This will potentially be done by Heather Humphreys, who is assuming the justice portfolio for at least the first three weeks of Ms McEntee’s maternity leave.

On civil liberties concerns about body cams, Ms McEntee said: “This is about fighting crime, it’s about protecting people, it’s about protecting members of An Garda Síochána.

“Anything that we do we will make sure that obviously we’re within the parameters of the law.”

Mr Harris said there is a well-developed market for bodycams and that concerns expressed about civil liberties have been addressed elsewhere in Europe where they are in use.

The new Garda facility on Dublin’s Military Road, which Mr Harris described as “state-of-the-art”, will house as many as 900 officers from specialist units relocating from premises at the Harcourt Square building.

The facility is named after Colonel Walter Scott, an honorary commissioner of the New York City Police and who, in 1923, presented the fledgling Garda Síochána with a $1,000 bond to sponsor the Scott Medal for valour – the highest accolade that can be bestowed upon a garda member.

Units moving to the new building include the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI), Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (GNDOCB) and the Garda National Cyber Crime Bureau (GNCCB).

Office of Public Works chairman Maurice Buckley said at the opening that the €86 million building had been delivered on time and on budget.

The project had been criticised by the Dáil’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) as no longer being fit for purpose because it is not big enough to fit all of the Garda members working at Harcourt Square.

Asked about this criticism, Mr Harris said that some national units have seen increased numbers and other new units – such as the cyber crime bureau – have been created.

He said there are alternative buildings for some units that were at Harcourt Square.

On whether it was regrettable that they are not all under the same roof, he said: “These are very fine premises and I think those who haven’t made it here regret that they’re not here.

“At the same time from an operational perspective we are in a good strong place in terms of the facilities we have and the service we provide and the investigative effort that we’re able to make.”