GRA president denies denigrating Defence Forces

MINISTER FOR Justice and Defence Alan Shatter has again clashed with rank-and-file gardaí, accusing one of the leaders of the Garda Representative Association of publicly denigrating the Defence Forces.

He urged outgoing GRA president Damien McCarthy to reflect on his comments and not to repeat them.

Mr McCarthy insisted he did not denigrate the Defence Forces, suggesting that Mr Shatter had not listened properly when the comments were made. “Nowhere did I denigrate members of the Defence Forces,” Mr McCarthy said.

“I have the utmost respect for each and every member of the Defence Forces and for anyone to suggest that I have denigrated any member; I most certainly did not.”

The row between Mr Shatter and the GRA, which represents more than 11,000 gardaí, came just a day after Mr McCarthy used his address to the GRA’s annual conference in Athlone, Co Westmeath, to strongly criticise Mr Shatter’s record in office, saying he was soft on crime.

In a strongly worded speech, he was critical of the Government’s decision to close 39 Garda stations this year, with more to follow in 2013, claiming this would create “criminal badlands” where the fear of crime would increase greatly.

When Mr Shatter addressed delegates and said there were a number of good reasons why Garda morale should be high, delegates laughed. He also accused Mr McCarthy of damaging the morale of his own members by what he suggested was negative rhetoric.

While Mr Shatter left the conference in Athlone as planned on Tuesday evening, he was back in the Westmeath town yesterday to attend a second annual policing conference, being held by the Association of Garda Superintendents.

It was during his speech at this conference that he took Mr McCarthy to task. The issue centres on a section of Mr McCarthy’s address to Mr Shatter at the GRA’s conference on Tuesday.

In one section of it, Mr McCarthy questioned why recruitment was continuing in the Defence Forces at a time when the public-sector recruitment moratorium was being strictly applied to the Garda.

“Minister, it is remarkable that you continued to recruit members for the permanent Defence Forces. Is Ireland under attack? Is there a war we are about to join? Because we are under attack in the war on crime at home, right here in Ireland,” he said.

When addressing the superintendents’ conference yesterday, Mr Shatter said these remarks were not acceptable, pointing out that the Garda and Defence Forces enjoyed a close working relationship and were not in competition with each other for resources.

He described Mr McCarthy’s remarks as “unfortunate”.

“I do not believe anything is to be gained by any member of An Garda Síochána denigrating the role of our Defence Forces and I hope that such a comment is not repeated again,” he said.

“I’m very conscious that there’s a good, close relationship between An Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces. I wouldn’t like to see that relationship damaged. They work together in the interests of the State and everyone who lives in the State. I’d hope that the comments that were made wouldn’t be repeated in the future and that in a calmer moment there would be some reflection on those remarks.”

When Mr McCarthy learned of Mr Shatter’s comments, he said he stood over his speech because it was untrue to suggest he had denigrated the Defence Forces in the address. He suggested Mr Shatter had not been listening to the speech properly.