Newly-appointed Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly is examining proposals to arm more frontline gardaí with Taser stun guns, already used by specialist units, in a bid to better tackle serious violent confrontations.
Outlining his priorities and plans for the force under his commissionership, Mr Kelly said he believes national security is a big challenge that is not spoken about enough.
Listing the main challenges facing the Republic, he cited domestic “political extremism” that has often led to violence, “radical Islamism”, “dissident republicanism” and some foreign states that seek to destabilise other societies.
Overall, Garda members would be required to do “an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay” while he is commissioner. He was very concerned by the recent Crowe report on roads policing, which found a substantial minority of gardaí resented working and engaged in work avoidance.
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But he noted the report also said the “vast majority” of gardaí whose work was reviewed “were doing a really good job”.
“However, there is this cohort of people who aren’t interested in doing their job,” he said, adding, “performance management is something we’re going to have to work on.” He will hold talks with the Garda associations about changing those performance management practices.
“I am not going to tolerate that sort of behaviour,” he said when asked about some gardaí who believe they are immune from being held accountable for poor performance.
Many gardaí “do immense work, far outside the parameters of what they need to do”, and he is not going to “disrespect” them by allowing other gardaí to abdicate their responsibilities without consequences.
Mr Kelly took over as Garda Commissioner on Monday, on a five-year contract, replacing Drew Harris, who has retired after seven years in the role. The new commissioner met the media in Dublin on Tuesday, setting out nine key areas he wants to focus on while leading An Garda Síochána, which has just over 14,200 sworn members at present.
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While the size of the Garda needs to grow to meet more complex policing challenges, Mr Kelly said recruitment has recently “turned a corner”, with a class of almost 200 recruits due to graduate in November. That will be the biggest group to pass out from the Garda College in Templemore, Co Tipperary, since Garda recruitment recommenced after the closure of the college during the pandemic.
However, Mr Kelly’s first priority is improving the way Garda members engage with victims of crime, especially those targeted in domestic violence. This must be “courteous and professional”, yet some recent surveys and research, including by Women’s Aid, showed “in stark terms” that many victims were not satisfied with the service provided by the Garda. Mr Kelly added that crime victims often referenced that their “first contact” with gardaí was unsatisfactory.
When people reach out to gardaí, they should not be met with “barriers or hindrance”, he said.
He also wants to focus on high-visibility policing, specifically ensuring more frontline gardaí are on the streets. Mr Kelly said a recent boost in visibility of gardaí on Dublin city centre streets has worked very well. He wants to see that replicated in other parts of Dublin and urban centres. But he insisted the Republic is a “low-crime country”.
As well as considering arming more gardaí with Taser stun guns, with a pilot project initially, he also wants to roll out body-worn cameras for gardaí across the State. While the cameras are being used in parts of Dublin and in Limerick and Waterford cities, their full roll-out is a vital step in better equipping gardaí for the demands of modern policing, he said.
