Brexit flagged as key issue in policing public consultation

The gardaí’s preparedness for Brexit, cross-border crime, and national security are among the pressing issues the Policing Authority and An Garda Síochána are seeking views on.

Fri, 01 Sep, 2017 - 01:00

Cormac O’Keeffe

Under parallel public consultations on policing priorities for 2018, both the authority and the gardaí are looking for submissions on a range of topics, from organised crime to community policing.

The authority has published a draft 2018 Policing Priorities, which it wants the public to give their views on.

The authority lists “Brexit preparedness” along with cross border crime, drugs, and human trafficking in the priority heading on organised crime.

This is a clear indication that this issue will feature prominently in the 2018 Policing Plan and is a signal to An Garda Síochána that the authority expects a focus by them on this area.

The authority also raised the issues of increasing incidents of assaults and reductions in detections of crimes by gardaí.

Issues concerning community policing include victims, major incident planning, anti-social behaviour, crime prevention, and Garda visibility.

The authority also flagged areas which reflect controversies and scandals this year, such as the breath test and Templemore sagas.

Issues such as Garda ethics, the Garda renewal programme, civilianisation, supervision, and the cultural audit are all highlighted.

The authority also raised concerns about the quality of Garda crime data.

An Garda Síochána raises five “strategic pillars” in its public consultation: national and international security; confronting crime; roads policing; community engagement/public safety and organisational development.