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Irish Independent
04-08-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Letters: New garda commissioner Justin Kelly has a big job ahead as he tries to turn force around
While I, like many others, am delighted to see a homegrown member succeed to the highest echelons of the force, Justin Kelly will have his work cut out for him given the myriad problems facing him, including the recently published Crowe report. The dogs on the street know that the present model of policing just doesn't work and has been shown to be more of a hindrance than a help to both the public and to gardaí. Mr Kelly's main tasks will be recruitment and retention of gardaí, and to stem the flow of resignations which has dogged the force these past number of years. While the Government has ramped up its attempts to recruit, the expected increase in numbers hasn't materialised. Morale in the force has been at an all-time low, with many frontline gardaí I've spoken to concerned that the amalgamation of divisions, reduction in districts and closure of smaller stations expose them and the public to unnecessary dangers. The issue of over-discipline and internal oversight will be another factor he will have to contend with. While he may have master's in criminal justice and in serious crime, Mr Kelly will have to master an ingrained and faulty ideology that has caused major friction between the garda associations and the office of commissioner itself. How he will handle all of these issues, while attempting to appease his political overlords and those in the PCSA (Policing and Community Safety Authority), while governing a force in transformation and change, is anyone's guess. What makes him tick, and how will he use his management skills to radically change the narrative and bring together a force that has seen a huge chasm between those at the top and those who risk their lives on our behalf every day? Well, the proof will definitely be in the pudding. Christy Galligan, Letterkenny, Co Donegal Stop sneering – remote working can unlock huge potential of rural Ireland Sinéad Ryan and others in the media appear to be taking great delight in AIB's decision to force staff back to the office three days per week ('AIB wants its staff back to the office more – they should consider themselves lucky', Irish Independent, August 1). As a public servant who worked almost exclusively from home during the pandemic, I have written at length to this newspaper and elected representatives on this topic (all on my own time, I might add). Working from home is not always ideal. While one is sometimes more able to focus on specific tasks, there can also be domestic distractions and it can be isolating too. I will admit there is an increased sense of collegiality and more opportunities for collaboration when working from the office. However, remote working, by its very nature, can be done from a number of different locations. Most effectively, perhaps, from one of the many state-of-the art 'remote hubs' the government spent millions on establishing around the country during Covid and which are now, for the most part, gathering dust. This largely untapped resource could be the key to unlocking a new digital decentralisation. These hubs could effectively become branch offices, allowing people from remote regions to live and work, settle down and start families in their own locality. Negating the need for long commutes or relocation to already congested and expensive urban areas. Breathing new life into rural towns which are currently in decline. If the public sector took the lead on this (it was public money spent on these hubs, after all) others would surely follow. It would sure beat reading endless opinion pieces by mean-spirited columnists gloating about spoiled workers being dragged back to the office by tough, uncompromising, bombastic bosses. Yawn… Paddy Sharkey, Kilcar, Co Donegal Digital divide in literacy poses serious risks to the future of our democracy A century ago, mass literacy helped build liberal democracy; today, its erosion may accelerate its decline. Long-form reading – the kind that trains attention, deep reasoning and tolerance for complexity – is quietly becoming a class-based skill. As smartphones colonise ever more of daily life, this cognitive bifurcation will harden. We already see the outlines: elites paying fees to shield their children from screens, while poorer families navigate algorithm-driven content designed to addict. The result is not just cultural decay but political vulnerability. A distracted electorate, trained on dopamine loops and meme-slop, is less able to scrutinise policy, follow evidence or defend democratic norms. Ireland, with a highly educated population, still young in its republic, would do well to recognise this as a national risk. Literacy was once the route to dignity. If it is allowed to drift into the realm of the privileged, we may soon find that the real digital divide was not access to devices but the ability to think beyond them. Enda Cullen, Tullysaran, Co Armagh Disgusting racist attacks on Indian community do not represent real Ireland The increasing number of physical attacks on members of the Indian community living in Ireland (which have led to the Indian embassy issuing a safety advisory notice) is a cause of growing concern. To think that the Indian constitution was significantly influenced by the Irish Constitution, and in particular the shared provision for government to promote the social and economic welfare of all the people. How the founders of our Constitution must be turning in their graves at today's horrendous racist attacks. Mark Hogan, Wicklow town Gavin's Football Review Committee has been real winner this GAA season After the camogie final next Sunday, the 'hooter' on GAA inter-county season 2025 will sound, leaving only speculation and opinion as to the teams of the year and the players of the season. I have for many weeks now, settled on my team of 2025, namely, the Football Review Committee captained by Jim Gavin. The captain and his team have certainly put in the graft, have stuck to their game plan, with perceptive flexibility as needed, and haven't shirked their essential responsibilities. Thus, they have scored championship-winning goals in the radical reappraisal and rehabilitation of Gaelic football. My only concern now is, that if this team features again next year, football will galvanise itself as 'the new hurling' of the GAA world, an anathema for a Kilkenny man.
Irish Daily Mirror
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
'Brazen' disregard for roads policing has to be addressed quickly, minister says
A "brazen" disregard for roads policing duties needs to be addressed as quickly as possible, a minister has said. Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said that an unpublished report found gardai showed a "blatant disregard" for their job while they knew their actions were being reviewed. It comes amid a focus on road safety in Ireland, with the government introducing new speed laws and the Garda Commissioner mandating that frontline gardai dedicate 30 minutes of road policing duties per shift. Sean Canney, a junior minister with responsibility for road safety, said the findings were "shocking" and "serious". "There's no point in us bringing in laws, reducing speed limits, doing all of this kind of thing, if we don't have a functional enforcement section within the Gardai," he said on RTE Radio. 31.07.2025. . Photo Shows : Outgoing Garda Commissioner Drew Harris and Policing &Community Safety Authority (PCSA) speaking to the media ahead of his retirement and last meeting at the PCSA this afternoon. Photo:Sam Boal/Collins Photos. Mr Canney said his thoughts were with the families of the 95 people who had died on Irish roads so far this year. He said he had not read the report conducted by the consultancy firm Crowe, which has carried out investigations on behalf of An Garda Siochana previously, but planned to meet the Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan and both the outgoing and incoming Garda Commissioners over the issue. "I'll be talking to the commissioners to express my deep concern with what is in this report," he said. He said the independent Crowe report was conducted while the reviewer was "sitting in the car with a garda that wasn't doing his duty and didn't seem to have a problem with that." A Garda road closure sign "So I think there is definitely a serious case to be answered here as quickly as possible." Mr Harris said he commissioned the examination after he received an anonymous report from a whistleblower. The chairwoman of the Policing and Community Safety Authority, Elaine Byrne, said the report was "shocking" and found some gardai showed a "blatant disregard" for road policing while they knew their actions were being reviewed. "They were openly hostile to doing their job," she said, in what she described as a "wake-up call" for An Garda Siochana. She also described an issue with fear among Garda managers of carrying out poor performance management, which she said Mr Harris agreed was an issue. Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Daily Mirror
01-08-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Extreme online pornography is 'radicalising' young men, Garda boss insists
Extreme online pornography is "radicalising" some young men into normalising violence against women, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has said. Mr Harris said in some cases gardai have had to explain to perpetrators of violent sexual assaults why what they did was wrong. Mr Harris will step down as commissioner in September after seven years in the post. On Thursday, he addressed his final meeting of the Policing Authority. 31.07.2025. . Photo Shows : Outgoing Garda Commissioner Drew Harris and Policing &Community Safety Authority (PCSA) speaking to the media ahead of his retirement and last meeting at the PCSA this afternoon. Photo:Sam Boal/Collins Photos. Speaking to the media afterwards he explained his concerns about the prevalence of online pornography. He said: "I think the use of the expression hard-core is no longer relevant. "The pornography which is readily accessible on the internet is extreme in the violence that it perpetrates, mostly against women. "What happens then is that young men see this and this is a major influence on them in terms of what they think a sexual relationship is. "We see this manifest in serious sexual assaults where, literally, it has to be explained to them what they did was wrong. "Because seeing this violent behaviour has become so normalised." The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week He added: "There is a trend in the violent behaviour of the offending which you can relate back to the imagery which is in pornography, which is so prevalent on the internet. "That has been also observed by the various studies, Women's Aid recently released a report and that was their conclusion as well. "My analysis of this is probably more anecdotal. "As I look at the incidents and what is described, but also what the responses of the various assailants, perpetrators are, one can see that they have become normalised to the violence that they are seeing online." Mr Harris said some men's view of a normal sexual relationship had become "completely distorted". He added: "You can say almost that they have been radicalised. "I do think there is an education piece for this. We have heard a lot over the last few weeks about limiting the access of children to all sorts of violent imagery, I think that's a good thing. "It has to be faced up as well that there is a multibillion industry behind this that we are not going to defeat by attacking it, what we have to do is make sure people are educated and understand what a proper relationship is." The commissioner said: "What I am saying is one can see the trend, it is backed up by academic research. "We can see the trend ourselves and it is evident then when we consider some of the crimes that come through our courts in recent years." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Daily Mirror
31-07-2025
- Irish Daily Mirror
Harris shocked by report saying some traffic Gardaí 'openly hostile' towards job
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris says he has been left shocked by a damning report that found some roads policing officers have a brazen disregard for their duties. 'It is shocking and very worrying,' the Commissioner said on Thursday - after details of the report emerged. The Garda report was presented to the independent oversight body, the Policing and Community Safety Authority, in June - and revealed that some traffic Gardaí have no interest in their specialist jobs. It was ordered by Commissioner Harris earlier this year after he received an anonymous report from a whistleblower about elements of the roads policing operation around the country. The findings of that examination have been described as "shocking" by Mr Harris and the chairwoman of the PCSA, Dr Elaine Byrne, at a public meeting in Dublin on Thursday. Dr Byrne said the authority received the report in June and said it found some Gardaí involved in roads policing showed a "blatant disregard" for their job while they knew their actions were being reviewed. "They were openly hostile to doing their job," she said in what she described as a "wake-up call" for An Garda Síochána. Drew Harris and Elaine Byrne She added: "There are members within roads policing who seem very much disinterested in their job and this is something that we are concerned about in terms of performance of individual guards. And it's something that the previous authority have looked upon and the current authority would have concerns about the absence of performance management within the Gardaí.' She said the authority was also "shocked" at a "fear" of performance management within the Gardaí. She urged the Garda Commissioner to publish the report in due course, which Mr Harris said they would do once they ensured no one is identifiable. "What I'll undertake to do is we just do one final read through the report. I just want to be sure nobody's identifiable and then we can issue the report," he said. "It did arise from anonymous correspondence that I received, obviously from a roads policing member, and although anonymous, it had certainly a ring of authenticity about that." He said he asked for an examination of the work done by roads policing members and a working group is going through various recommendations. Harris said he wants to ensure nobody in the report is identifiable The Commissioner said: "The reason this is important is there's been a lot of focus on roads policing numbers, but also obviously, then the impact of enforcement on road deaths and seriously injured. "It's sobering to say the least in terms of its conclusions. 'It is shocking and very worrying. We were not pleased to see this report and see the conclusions within it.' Get all the big crime and court stories direct to your phone on our new WhatsApp service. Sign up here. The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
Irish Examiner
31-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Extreme online pornography 'fuelling gender violence', says Garda boss
Extreme online pornography is 'corrupting' young men into inflicting serious sexual violence on women, including in relationships, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has said. Commissioner Harris said tech companies are making 'billions' from this trade, which is also driving rises in domestic violence. 'A taboo subject' The commissioner, who retires at the end of August, said greater societal awareness of the 'blight' of domestic violence was needed, adding it was really a 'taboo subject' in the country. His comments come as official figures show almost 26,900 domestic abuse calls were made to gardaí in the first five months of 2025 – around 5,370 a month, on average. It is almost on a par with 2024, which was a record year, and significantly higher than preceding years. Mr Harris highlighted his concerns about domestic and sexual violence as he reflected on his seven-year term as commissioner at his final meeting with the renamed Policing and Community Safety Authority (PCSA) and the challenges ahead for policing. Other areas he raised were: Cyber crime — from child sexual abuse imagery, to online fraud scams and economic crime, saying this was the 'fastest-growing area of crime' which will be fuelled by AI; Drugs trade — pointing out that there seemed to be 'no end in the appetite for drugs', and that despite huge seizures by gardaí they 'do not seem to be denting supply' or street prices, and called for public health awareness campaigns of the damage caused by drugs. Mr Harris, who raised gender violence as one of his priorities at the start of his term in September 2018, said recent court cases of domestic homicides painted a 'grim vista'. He said the home 'should be the safest place' for women, but that too many have been murdered by their intimate partner. 'It's a very, very sorry, tragic tale,' he said. He agreed with PCSA chairwoman Elaine Byrne that 'not the same attention' was placed on the murder of women compared to gangland murders, adding there were 12 domestic murders of women compared to two gangland murders in 2024. Extreme pornography Mr Harris said extreme pornography on the internet had 'normalised very violent sexual conduct' by men towards women, including in relationships. Garda figures show that 67 prosecutions for non-fatal strangulation have been taken since the offence was introduced in November 2023, some 58 of which related to domestic abuse. Mr Harris said that domestic abuse situations 'can escalate very quickly and very tragically', but said the force had invested heavily in specialist units and training of gardaí and was improving. He said there needed to be an awareness of domestic abuse as a 'real blight on our society', adding it was "really a taboo subject'. On road policing, the commissioner expressed serious concern at a recent review of roads policing, which he said showed that a 'substantial minority' of gardaí 'seem to be little interested in road policing'. Ms Byrne said it was a 'shocking report'. On behalf of the PCSA, she thanked Mr Harris for his "seven years as a public servant".
