A Dublin Labour councillor, Mr Eric Byrne, yesterday called for the establishment of an independent Garda authority to deal with Garda complaints.
Mr Byrne proposed an authority comprising members nominated by the Minister for Justice, Garda representative bodies and community groups. He said that the authority should be chaired by a retired judge and would be required to produce annual reports to be laid before the Oireachtas.
According to Mr Byrne public confidence in Garda complaints is at an all-time low. "Public confidence has been further undermined by recent revelations of inadequacies and delays in the complaints procedure," he said.