A new report on Garda management has recommended that the force be run like a private corporation, led by a partly civilianised board of management, with fast-track promotion for bright young gardaí and "personal coaches" for senior officers who become "lonely" in management roles. Conor Lally, Crime Correspondent, reports.
It says the Garda Síochána should encourage members to enrol in degree courses, that these should be paid for by the force and graduation rewarded with salary increases and promotions.
A similar scheme is already in place for young officers in the Defence Forces.
The report also suggests that to attract high-calibre experts from the private sector to advise on widespread changes across the force, current salary scales may need to be set aside.
It has also criticised the Garda Síochána's record on civilianisation, branding as "risible" a 2001 plan to civilianise 500 posts over a 21-year period to free up gardaí for frontline duties. It concludes that a recruitment programme of that scale would take 21 months in the private sector. It added that the new civilian oversight board, which is now in charge of civilianisation, should be working towards the much shorter timeframe. The report's authors have also suggested that the roles of the Garda Commissioner, senior Garda officers and the Department of Justice in the running of the force be clearly set out in documents similar to memorandums or articles of association. The report, from the Advisory Group on Garda Management and Leadership Development, was published by the department yesterday.
The group was chaired by former senator Maurice Hayes. It was appointed last year by the then minister for justice Michael McDowell to advise the Garda Commissioner on issues including management changes, performance management, civilianisation and succession planning. Many of the proposals on civilianisation are already in place or recruitments begun. The Irish Times understands the other proposals are being considered by the Garda Commissioner.
The report suggests bright members of the force be identified early in their careers. These would be moved into the most challenging areas of the force and also act as assistants to senior officers in an effort to learn quickly from them.
The report believes those selected for fast-tracking should be allowed to "skip" ranks in an effort to get young gardaí into management positions. The report's authors also believe the six Assistant Commissioners in charge of the regions should effectively become the heads of six mini-forces within the Garda.
It believes the Assistant Commissioners should be given funding to hire civilian experts in areas such as human resources and financial planning to ensure the six independently operational entities become a reality. It has also recommended a system of benchmarked, targets and reviews for individual officers and specialist Garda units.