The Garda Commissioner Drew Harris spoke with presenter Carla O’Brien on this month’s Crimecall and answered questions on a range of topics such as the recent public disorder in Dublin, organised crime, road safety, recruitment and more. On the serious public order incident in the capital on November 23, the Commissioner said that the situation was dealt with very well by Gardaí who “responded in a very professional and courageous manner to awful circumstances.” On dealing with any future attempts at similar disturbances, he explained how we have more personnel on the ground and that we have increased equipment to deal with such disorder. He also mentioned how there are learnings in terms of the speed the situation escalated, how social media activity mobilised people so quickly, our equipment, processes and public order tactics. Speaking about continuing to police by consent, the Commissioner told Crimecall that one of An Garda Síochána's principal strengths is our connection to the local community and that this is one of the differences between this organisation and other police services from around the world. "We have that strong connection, we want to maintain that strong connection", he said. Answering a question about rosters and morale, the Commissioner said, "many of the issues that staff associations have flagged up in recent times are well known to us and we had a programme of work addressing those, be it terms and conditions, and representations we have made to the relevant departments is all ongoing." He said that all feedback from the associations, including our computer systems, bureaucracy have been listened to and that An Garda Síochána's systems have been adjusted and will continue to be adjusted. “We have also put a huge amount of welfare supports in place for Gardaí and this year we have new initiatives including the rollout of mental health first aid training and peer support”, Commissioner Harris said. Responding to a question about recruitment, the Commissioner highlighted how An Garda Síochána wants to be an employer of choice in a very busy and competitive job market. He highlighted just how rewarding the work is, the training and support provided and how “it’s a job worth doing.” He said that as a Garda, “you make a huge impact on the society that we all live in. Policing at times can be difficult and we have to make it very clear that we have the support in place so that people can see it’s a good place to work and it’s a good job to do”. The Commissioner when speaking in relation to organized crime mentioned that An Garda Síochána had worked very hard around the area of drug dealing on a local, national and international level. He explained that while drug dealing is primarily driven by demand, Ireland is seen as a wealthy country which lends itself to being targeted by organized crime groups. The Commissioner said that the drug seizures throughout 2023 are a testament to the work that has been done with our international partners. When answering a question in relation to road fatalities the Commissioner highlighted the initiatives undertaken by our Roads Policing units who he said have been concentrating their efforts around times that we know collisions are likely to occur. A second important development in this area he said is the extension of the fixed charge penalty notices that provides for increased productivity, allowing Gardaí to spend more time on our roads detecting offences. Finally he mentioned the key lifesaver offences, warning people to be careful not to drive while intoxicated or distracted and to reduce speed – with speed being the main contributory factor to collisions on our roads. | 