Gardaí have reiterated a deadline of September 1st given to the Minister for Justice to provide the force with what they describe as the appropriate vehicles to do their jobs or face the prospect of unspecified action by the force, writes Ian Noctor.
The Garda Representative Association (GRA) general secretary Mr PJ Stone said that gardaí should at least have cars capable of taking some form of impact "without folding up like a bean can".
"If the expense of the minsterial fleet of Mercedes and those of the judiciary and ex Taoisigh were removed from the Garda car budget, we could afford safer cars for our members on the frontline."
Gardaí say that, despite the deaths of two members of the force two years ago when their patrol car was rammed by a stolen car in south Dublin, little has been done to improve the safety of the patrol cars.
There's disquiet among some members of the force that a limited number of Saab cars introduced to the Garda fleet are not being tested appropriately. There's also criticism that the cars are being used in the traffic section and not in what's being described as the hard core of policing, where their ability to withstand the trials faced by gardaí on patrol can be properly assessed.
Mr Stone said it's not expected that each and every car in the Garda fleet would be upgraded. However GRA members do expect that cars which run the risk of being rammed should offer as much protection as possible to Gardaí. Expecting Gardaí to go into dangerous environments in standard unmodified domestic cars is not good enough, says Mr Stone.
"If another member of the Garda Síochána is killed or injured badly in a car because somebody hasn't taken the health and safety provisions seriously, membership on the ground are going to get extremely angry and frustrated."
At the GRA annual conference in Bundoran, a motion was passed stating that, if a commitment was not forthcoming to provide appropriate vehicles by September 1st, the conference directed the GRA central executive to pursue appropriate action.
The type of action open to Gardaí is not specified. However members of the Gardaí at the Bundoran conference pointed out that as Garda cars are not subject to the NCT there is a concern that the cars may not meet certain criteria and standards.
"Gardaí who are trained to drive patrol cars are obliged to carry out a series of checks and controls in advance of taking a car out on patrol," says Mr Stone. "A Garda driver cannot be directed to take out a car which he or she considers to be dangerous or in anyway defective. If you do have worries yet you still take it out, you leave yourself open to an accusation of negligence. However, my personal experience is that garda cars are always very well maintained and have whatever work done to them as an when it's needed."
A Deloitte and Touche report commissioned by the Government recommended a reduction in the number of vehicles from different manufacturers used in the Garda fleet. The report, which was delivered to the Government two and half years ago, also recommended cars of a better quality.
Mr Stone has appealed to the Garda Commissioner and the Minister for Justice to follow the European example. "We need to look at best practice abroad," he says. "We need to assess the types of vehicles being used by other police forces across Europe and come back with various reports as to the most suitable type of car.
"We need to press the Government to try pilot schemes, as what they've done with the Saab, and then decide on a limited number of marques. This might at least give us some protection and safeguards. If they don't do that, if they continue to ignore the whole notion of introducing safer and more secure cars, then the problem will get worse. It's not going to go away."