Committee of Public Accounts to examine 2020 Appropriation Account for An Garda Síochána

The meeting at 9.30am in Committee Room 3 of Leinster House will be joined by the C&AG, Seamus McCarthy.

The afternoon session, beginning at 1.30pm, will consider the minutes of the PAC meeting of 24 March, correspondence and other business of the Committee.

PAC Cathaoirleach Deputy Brian Stanley said: “The Committee welcomes this opportunity to meet with the Commissioner and his colleagues to examine the 2020 expenditure of An Garda Síochána, which totalled €1.9billion. This is the first of a series of meetings over the coming weeks looking at spending across the policing and justice sector.

“The Committee will examine expenditure on the new Garda Metropolitan Headquarters for Dublin at Military Road beside Heuston Station. This project has been examined with the Office of Public Works, which is responsible for the construction of the facility, and was the subject of a very critical PAC report last year as the building will not be large enough to accommodate all the Garda units from the current HQ building at Harcourt Square.

“Other areas of interest include the development of a new Computer Aided Dispatch System, procurement and maintenance of the Garda transport fleet, including spending on additional vehicles during the Covid-19 pandemic, the deployment of Student Gardai for pandemic-related policing, the Garda Reserve, payroll overpayments, and spending on allowances and overtime. The Committee looks forward to a wide-ranging discussion with Commissioner Harris and his management team on these issues and related matters.”

The meeting in Committee Room 3 can be viewed live on Oireachtas TV.

PAC is a standing committee of Dáil Éireann which focuses on ensuring public services are run efficiently and achieve value for money. Further information on the role and remit of the Committee can be found here.

Committee proceedings can also be viewed on the Houses of the Oireachtas Smartphone App, available for Apple and Android devices.