Reform of Garda long overdue

IRISH people who have lived overseas for any length of time frequently appreciate the gardaí more than most.

Others have tended to take it for granted that we have a civilian, unarmed and impartial police force instead of the politicised militias which frequently mishandle policing in some neighbouring mainland European states.

Let us not exaggerate our previous love for the men and women in blue and use that exaggeration to overplay how that affection is now shattered by the revelations in recent days. The plain fact is that policing is a largely thankless job and in the best of societies many law-abiding people dislike contact with the police because they fear it will cost them in some shape or form.