Gardaí write to commissioner in appeal to extend application deadline for deputy role

Mon, 19 Aug, 2024 - 18:33

Cormac O'Keeffe Security Correspondent

Six of the country’s top gardaí have written to the Garda Commissioner and the head of the Policing Authority seeking a deferral in Thursday’s closing date for the position of deputy commissioner.

None of the six assistant commissioners — out of eight in total — have applied for the job because they believe they are being “discriminated” against in tax burdens they will be hit with compared to external candidates and former PSNI officers who are now in An Garda Siochána.

The Government decided not to fill the position of Deputy Commissioner of Policing and Security last October after none of the assistant commissioners and very few of the country’s 47 chief superintendents (the next rank down) applied.

Last December, the Finance Minister set up an external examination of the tax issue.

The assistant commissioners expected they would be informed of the result of the review before the position would be filled.

Last month, the Government advertised the position again, with a closing date of this Thursday.

Although the review has been completed, its findings have not been made known.

None of the six assistant commissioners are expected to apply by Thursday if this does not change.

The six assistant commissioners sent a letter to Commissioner Drew Harris and the chair of the Policing Authority, Elaine Byrne, seeking a postponement in the competition deadline.

The six have claimed that they are being “discriminated” against because of a tax burden they will face on their retirement that other candidates will not be hit with.

While calculations of the tax bill vary, reports have estimated it could be "between €100,000-€500,000".

If the Government proceeds with its current deadline, and if none of the six assistant commissioners apply, or chief superintendents, it is likely that the position could be filled by an external candidate or a former PSNI officer now in the Gardaí.

Two of the eight assistant commissioner are former PSNI officers. The second of the two deputy commissioners is a former Canadian police boss.

The position of Deputy Commissioner Policing and Security is a key role in the Garda hierarchy as they have a supervisory function over operational policing and organised crime as well as security and intelligence matters.

If the position goes external or to a former PSNI officer it will mean that none of the top three Garda positions will be internal career gardaí.

In a statement, the Department of Finance said the independent review was complete and that the minister was “considering the report and its recommendations”.

It said that any decision to publish the report or its recommendations would be made by the minister.

The Department of Justice said "tax issues are a matter for the Minister for Finance and it should be noted that the standard fund threshold is a marginal tax rate which applies to all public and private sector workers with a pension above a certain threshold".

It said queries on the review should be directed to the Department of Finance.