It is true, as has been said here by numerous Deputies, that requests for the establishment of a force of this kind have been made over many years. As far back as 1931 a committee which was known as the Carrigan Committee reported on the Criminal Law (Amendment) Acts and juvenile prostitution. It recommended that in the Dublin Metropolitan Division a staff of at least 12 specially-trained policewomen should be provided. In 1950, a committee was set up to inquire into the organisation of the Garda. It was known as the Deegan Committee, and that committee, having heard evidence from the Joint Committee of Women's Societies and Social Workers, examined the case for appointing policewomen. After discussions with the Garda authorities and individual officers it made the following recommendations:—
"From our examination of the problem we are satisfied that there are many duties, mainly in connection with matters affecting children, young women and girls, on which policewomen could be usefully employed in the cities. We recommend therefore that policewomen should be recruited as members of the Garda Síochána. Until experience has been gained of this innovation we would confine their activities to the Dublin Metropolitan Area, and we recommend that as an experiment, and when amending legislation is enacted, a corps of 12 policewomen should be assigned to that area."
The committee thought that while the duties of policewomen would primarily be concerned with matters affecting children and young women and girls they should be given wide experience and should, as far as possible, be employed on the same duties as their male colleagues.
These recommendations were made by committees of very responsible persons and Deputies will notice that, in this Bill, we are in effect adopting the recommendations contained in the reports of these committees.
The written examination which these young ladies will undergo will be on the same basis as that for male candidates for the Garda. In addition to the written qualifying test there will be an interview at which appearance, intelligence, personality, special qualifications and general suitability will be taken into account. Final placings will be based on the results of the interview only and women candidates will be required to pass an oral test in Irish before appointment.
I casually mentioned in the course of my statement that there would be a qualifying written examination in educational subjects including Irish and apparently arising from that simple statement Deputy Dillon made a most impassioned attack on such a requirement. He asked what benefit the use of knowledge of Irish would be to these women in dealing with people in Summerhill or Ballybough. He said he was born in that area and knew all about it. I submit Deputy Dillon is living in the past and is dealing with the situation that may have existed when he was a boy. He forgets that since that time, and for a generation now, knowledge of the Irish language is a necessity in almost every examination for public posts. I have never heard Deputy Dillon attack the requirement of a knowledge of Irish in respect of civil servants, nor in respect of any of the other public appointments where Irish is regarded as necessary and I fail to understand why he should attack it in this case. The people of Summerhill and Ballybough have been taught Irish in the schools. It may not be the type the purists would speak but at least they have an elementary knowledge of the language and most of them would be able to understand it.
Deputy Dillon also fails to realise that these policewomen patrolling in the centre of the city, say in O'Connell Street, might very well be asked questions in Irish and if they were incapable of answering it would make them, and the State also, appear ridiculous. That is all I want to say about the Deputy's remarks regarding the requirement of a knowledge of Irish.
The Deputy took the minimum pay figure of five guineas and said it was not sufficient. That five guineas is actually for the period after they are accepted into the force and while they are undergoing training. Later on, that amount will be increased. They will get £6 7s. 6d. on completion of training. At the end of a year after their appointment, it will go up to £6 10s. 2d. and it will then go up by the usual increments year by year to £8 7s. 6d. The Deputy also mentioned the question of uniform, as did a number of other Deputies. That is under examination and I have no doubt but that a suitable type of uniform will evolve. I agree it is necessary that these ladies should look well and, as some Deputy remarked, the very fact that they feel they look well will make them efficient.
Deputy Everett seemed to be concerned about the cost of the women police force. He mentioned that it was one of the things that had deterred him, when Minister, from taking any action on the matter. I secured the agreement of the Government to this project by reason of the fact that the cost will be negligible because, instead of recruiting 12 men, we will recruit 12 women. Therefore, whatever extra cost there may be will not, as the Deputy seemed to suggest, necessitate a Supplementary Estimate or something of that kind.
Several Deputies said it was desirable to extend this force from Dublin to Cork and other county boroughs, and even into rural Ireland. This may arise in time. As I have said, this is merely an experiment and we have got to see how it will operate in its initial stages. If it is successful—and I believe it will be because it is a necessary step and one which should have been taken many years ago—I shall be very happy. A similar experiment was carried out in the Six Counties in 1943. They began with only six policewomen. The force has operated very successfully there and, from that initial six, its strength has grown to one district inspector, one head constable, three sergeants and 29 constables. I feel confident that similar success will obtain here in the course of some years.
I was also asked about promotion. Promotion in the women police will operate in due course as it is operating in the Garda Síochána. I was also asked what will become of the women police assistants who are at present operating in an unofficial capacity. They will continue as at present. They are probably outside the age limits for entry into the new force.
The discussion, if it does nothing else, will have served a very useful purpose by drawing the attention of likely candidates to the fact that one of the essential requirements for becoming a member of the force will be a knowledge of the Irish language. But I disagree completely with Deputy Dillon's remarks about the necessity for having a knowledge of Irish.
