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The departure of Garda Commissioner Nóirín O'Sullivan was broadly welcomed by Opposition politicians who said it presented an opportunity for more real and necessary reform within An Garda Síochána.
Fianna Fáil justice spokesman Jim O’Callaghan said her going paved the way for a new chapter for the Garda.
Ms O'Sullivan informed Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan of her intention on Sunday.
While wishing her well in her retirement, Mr O’Callaghan said “her resignation means there has been some accountability within An Garda Síochána for the 1.5 million false breath tests recorded on the Garda Pulse system”.
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He said the process to find a new Garda Commissioner presents an opportunity for the Policing Authority and the Government to ensure there is more real and necessary reform within An Garda Síochána.
“We must learn from the mistakes of the past and rebuild confidence within the force itself and in the wider public arena. The new commissioner must be given the support and resources to ensure that all of the reforms needed can be implemented so that every officer can undertake their duties, and that confidence across all sections of An Garda Síochána is restored”.
‘Clear-out’
The Social Democrats too welcomed the announcement that the Garda Commissioner is to retire and said it must be the start of a “fundamental clear-out” at the top.
In a statement, the Social Democrats said Ms O’Sullivan’s retirement “must be the first step in robust efforts to rebuild internal morale and public confidence in the force”.
Co-leader Róisín Shortall said: “The departure of the Garda Commissioner must be the start of a fundamental clear out at the top of An Garda Síochána.
“It is crucial that this is only the first step in a wider effort to rebuild the force from the ground up. Leadership and accountability are not about securing scalps, but about ensuring that our police force undergoes the radical and transformative changes needed to rebuild morale and ensure public confidence and trust.”
Ms Shortall said it was “unfortunate that it took so long for the commissioner to realise that she had lost all credibility and authority at the helm of an organisation mired in controversy over financial irregularities at Templemore, the penalty points scandal, the denigration of whistle blowers, and the latest revelations of falsified breath tests on a massive scale”.
“It is also very difficult to comprehend how Fine Gael and its government partners saw fit to repeatedly defend the Garda Commissioner and allow her to remain in her post. We now need to see swift moves to tackle the pervasive cultural problems and appalling institutional practices that have brought An Garda Síochána to such a low ebb in recent times.”
Labour Party leader Brendan Howlin also welcomed Ms O’Sullivan’s decision to stand down.
He said that while he recognised the decades of service that Ms O’Sullivan had given the State, it was “clearly in the interests of policing and the urgently required reform of An Garda Síochána that we have new leadership in the force”.
He said the new Garda Commissioner would be the first to be appointed by the Government on the recommendation of the Policing Authority.
“There clearly must be an international competition with clear criteria set out by the Authority to fulfil the reform agenda. I have confidence that the Policing Authority will successfully achieve that task,” Mr Howlin said.
“I have always said that this was not a issue of changing one individual but a culture, and the new commissioner must be resourced to ensure that cultural change comes about.”
“Meanwhile it is important that the thousands of men and women of An Garda Síochána continue to be supported in the critically important work they do on behalf of the citizens of our State.”
Green Party justice spokesman, Cllr Roderic O’Gorman, said the position of Ms O’Sullivan had been the source of controversy for some time, and said the party welcomed her retirement.
“Public confidence in the force has not recovered under her stewardship, and while she deserves credit for kick-starting long overdue reform in the gardaí, the way she has handled repeated controversies has left a lot to be desired. Her performance at the Public Accounts Committee, in particular, did not inspire confidence in the senior management of An Garda Síochána.”
He said her departure presented the opportunity to restore public confidence in An Garda Síochána.
Ms O’Sullivan said on Sunday that despite the unprecedented challenges, controversies and criticisms of the last few years, she looked back on her 36 years in the service “with enormous pride”.