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Updated 6.30pm
THE GOVERNMENT HAS announced a series of reforms to the justice system which including allowing the Garda Ombudsman (GSOC) to investigate the Garda Commissioner for the first time.
Cabinet today agreed proposals brought forward by Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald to amend the Garda Siochána Bill and give more powers to GSOC.
It follows months of controversies related to the gardaí which have seen the resignations of ex-commissioner Martin Callinan and former justice minister Alan Shatter.
Principal among the reforms announced today are that the justice minister of the day will now be able to refer criminal matters or allegations of serious misconduct on the part of the Garda Commissioner to GSOC for investigation.
The garda watchdog will also be able to initiate its own investigations into the Commissioner giving it powers to scrutinise the top police officer in the State for the first time.
However these investigations will not include the exercise of the “general direction and control functions” of the Commissioner which will instead fall within the remit of the proposed new Garda Authority.
Other changes include GSOC being allowed to initiate its own examination of practice policy and procedure in the gardaí and to have access to the PULSE system that gardaí use on a daily basis.
Other changes include extending the time limit for making a complaint to the Ombudsman from six months to a year in line with similar arrangements in the North.
GSOC will also be able to tap phones and electronic devices to carry out electronic surveillance during criminal investigations concerning members of the gardáí.
GSOC will also be able to carry out investigations where the identity of a specific garda is not initially known or where a non-garda could be involved in line with a recommendation in the recent Cooke report.
The bill will also give powers to the Garda Inspectorate to conduct its own investigations and inquiries.
In another change announced today, the government is setting up an Independent Review Mechanism consisting of two senior and five junior counsel that will review 221 allegations of garda misconduct.
The allegations were forwarded to the Department of the Taoiseach by various TDs and the Justice4All campaign group.
The group of barristers will now spend between eight and ten weeks examining the cases, some of which have already been the subject of gardaí and GSOC investigations, to establish if they merit any further investigation.
This comes on foot of the government being forced to deal with a series of allegations of garda malpractice in recent months leading to the formation of a number of Commissions of Inquiries.
Speaking today Frances Fitzgerald said: “These measures, together with the planned establishment of an independent Garda Authority and the opening-up of recruitment process for Garda Commissioner, marks the start of the sea-change I promised on coming to office as Minister for Justice.”
First published 2.07pm
Usually in an economic crisis countries resort to economic protectionism and barriers to free trade. Thankfully we’ve learned from the past and are instead seeing free trade as one of the many routes to recovery. Fair play to Obama, ain’t no way in hell Mitt Romney would have touched this idea.
Let’s hope we can use our presidency to advance these talks. We’ve everything to gain in the way of foreign direct investment and jobs.
the federal reserve runs america not the president so it wouldnt have made a difference whether its obama or romney.
If you want to learn from the past, maybe you should take a look at the mess that NAFTA made of the Mexican economy.
@limofax nafta also destroyed the US economy as mexican truck drivers undercut americans.US companies now outsource manufacturing to mexico as its cheaper & pay no import duties on goods.free trade is all about the big boys maximising profits.its the little guy that suffers with job losses.
The damage to Mexican farmers is down to US subsidies to the corn industry, not to the free trade policy itself.
and overall NAFTA has been of benefit to the Mexican economy.
Wrong on both counts. You need to Google it a bit harder than that.
Mexico’s economy is booming. GDP growth of 4% last year and rising.
Another step towards a one world government ? US, Canada & Mexico linked in the AMERO & Europe linked in the Euro & now the US & Europe will be linked so when the next crisis happens the talks will be about lets link the Euro & AMERO to create jobs & growth ? ? ! !
The ‘invisible hand’ as introduced by Adams into Economics will be used to line more pockets for the rich from the hard work of the middle and lower classes.
Can you imagine if people made these comments when free trade in the EU was first proposed?
Thank God TheJournal wasn’t around back then, Europe would still be at war.
Oh I contradicted your faith in greed just as I’m contradicting your belief in supernatural superstitions now. This god of your was created as another control mechanism for the workforce. A better life in the next one. Don’t make me laugh :)
I don’t think David that there is anything wrong with being very cautious about any new agreements. However, blind optimism is just plain stupid. A deal will only be a good deal if its a great deal for our citizens. Anything which would further drive down wages or allow multinationals to lay waste to our SME sector or independent retailers would be a disaster.
Well look, you go close the borders while I get my coat.
There’s no future in this country without free trade.
They once told us a country couldn’t survive without free trade in men, women and children of the same skin colour as the lad in the pic. Don’t take everything you learn in Trinners as a student mate as gospel mate. Been there. Done that ;)
I never mentioned closing the borders. I was talking about a good deal for our citizens. David, you could save yourself and FG any further daily embarrassment by not commenting on anything at all. I’d nearly believe that the reason FF polled higher than FG on Monday is down to your mutterings on here. If you’re the future of FG, then we all need to get our coats. Gullibility is not something to shout about.
Oh he’s a blueshirt. They’ve always been all about expansion. I should have known better and realised his was a party political broadcast.
Watch the US government pushing GM sh1t on Europe with Monsanto nudging them along. They’ve screwed up farming and food over there. Soon you’ll hear how GMO will help our agri industry prosper…. NO NO NO!!!!!!
Free trade will benefit the whole world. This is great news.
American’s eat GM food with no adverse effects to their health or environment. I would like to have the option of buying cheaper food. What if there’s a global famine in 50 years or so. I want food security for our grandchildren’s generation. Let the anti GM people starve and gather wild berries. The rest of us can eat crops.
Is that why the EU has banned some of Monsanto chemicals because it stops bees from collecting pollen & is killing them off ?
Have you not seen the studies on the rats that eat only Monsanto sprayed chemical food ?
Food security ? Tell the EU to stop putting a cap on what can be used, like their law trying to make bananas more straight or odd shaped fruit being banned ?
Be prepared to see SOPA or ACTA like proposals being made core parts of this agreement. They have done it before with Canada.
Roll on the NWO
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