Vol. 500 No. 5
61 Mr. Higgins (Dublin West) asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he has discussed with the parties in Northern Ireland and the British Government the development of a police force under democratic community control in the context of the peace process. [2790/99]
The Good Friday Agreement provided for the establishment of an Independent Commission on Policing to make recommendations for future policing structures and arrangements in Northern Ireland, including means of encouraging widespread community support for these arrangements.
The Commission, under the chairmanship of the former Governor of Hong Kong, Mr. Chris Patten, will make proposals in its report this summer to ensure that policing structures and arrangements, including composition, recruitment, training, culture, ethos and symbols, are such that, in a new approach Northern Ireland has a police service that can enjoy widespread support from, and be seen as an integral part of, the community as a whole. As the body charged with making these proposals, the commission has sought to consult widely with all relevant parties, groups and organisations, including the Government. The commission met with officials of the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform last September. On that occasion, the Government clearly set out to the commission its view of the need for fundamental changes to ensure, as mandated by the Agreement, a new beginning to policing in Northern Ireland with a police service capable of attracting and sustaining support from the community as a whole.
The Department of Foreign Affairs also discusses policing issues on a regular basis with a range of contacts in Northern Ireland. Policing issues are likewise regularly raised within the framework of the Anglo-Irish Intergovernmental Conference.
