Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 January 2021
621. Deputy Pa Daly asked the Minister for Justice the status of the work within her Department on legislative reforms to GSOC (details supplied); the length of time this work has been ongoing; and when the proposals from GSOC were first received by her Department. [3588/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy will be aware that in May 2017, the Government established the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland (CoFPI). The remit of CoFPI included the review of the police oversight architecture including how complaints against members of An Garda Síochána are dealt with. Parallel with CoFPI’s review, in December 2017 the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) sent proposals to the then Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan TD, for fundamental legislative reform, including in relation to GSOC’s independence.
Given CoFPI's remit, the Minister referred these proposals to CoFPI as an input to their work. The Deputy will be aware that CoFPI engaged extensively with GSOC in its own right as reflected in the final CoFPI Report, which was published in September 2018.
The new Programme for Government, Our Shared Future , commits to the rapid implementation of the recommendations of the Report of CoFPI and to the introduction of the Policing and Community Safety Bill to redefine the functions of An Garda Síochána and to provide a new governance and oversight framework.
Work on the General Scheme of the Policing and Community Safety Bill is at an advanced stage. It will, as recommended by CoFPI, include proposals for the reform of the processes for the handling of complaints and the conduct of investigations by GSOC in order to streamline them and ensure timely resolution while safeguarding due process for all concerned.
Extensive consultations have taken place with key stakeholders, including with GSOC and the Garda Síochána in the course of this work. I hope to be in a position to seek the approval of the Government to publish the General Scheme and to draft the Bill early this year.
