I would refer the Deputy to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 64 on 23 February 1995 which relates to the violent incidents which took place at Lansdowne Road on 15 February 1995. As I said in that reply, I have asked the former Chief Justice, Thomas Finlay, to report to me on this matter. I am satisfied that the right course now is to await the judge's findings on this matter.
With regard to the general question of training I can inform the Deputy that all members of the force undergo intensive public order training as part of the course syllabus for student gardaí at the Garda College in Templemore. This course is based on the techniques used by the police forces in other jurisdictions and new developments are incorporated from time to time.
In 1989, a Public Order Unit was established in the Dublin Metropolitan Area to ensure the availability of a skilled unit to deal with incidents of public disorder. A training programme was devised for this unit and put in place in January 1990. There have been numerous refresher courses conducted for the unit since then to ensure that their skills in this area are maintained.
I am informed by the Garda authorities that they keep abreast of developments in all aspects of training, including public order training, through regular contact with police forces in other jurisdictions and through firsthand contact at conferences and training programmes abroad.
