All Cabinet ministers will get garda drivers from next month

Switch from civilian drivers to gardaí was prompted by the security concerns of Garda Commissioner Drew Harris

Garda Commisioner Drew Harris recommended earlier this year that ministers' civilian drivers should be replaced by gardaí on grounds of security. File picture: Gareth Chaney/ Collins

Garda protection drivers are to be assigned to all Cabinet ministers from next month, on foot of a security recommendation from Garda Commissioner Drew Harris.

Up to 40 garda officers have been recruited to staff a driver pool for ministers, and a number of new luxury cars have been procured.

A number of the successful garda officers have been informed to be ready to take up their new duties from the first week in October.

However, a political decision must first be taken and the matter has gone from the Department of Justice to the Taoiseach’s office for final approval.

In 2011, ministerial protection was stood down on austerity grounds, and only the Taoiseach, Tánaiste, Attorney General, and Minister for Justice retained garda protection. However, as revealed by the Irish Examiner earlier this year, garda protection has been extended to Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe, Public Expenditure Minister Michael McGrath, and Health Minister Stephen Donnelly following a security review by Mr Harris following a number of protests outside the homes of ministers.

Garda protection was later extended to Heather Humphreys, the Social Affairs Minister, but a proposal to extend protection to all ministers who sit at Cabinet was paused amid a standoff with civilian drivers about severance arrangements.

As a result of the proposal, more than 20 civilian drivers are to be offered alternative employment as their contracts do not contain a break clause. Their contracts state they are ‘coterminous’ with their minister, meaning they cannot be laid off unless their full contract is paid out.

It is understood that a number of civilian drivers who worked with Mr Donohoe, Mr McGrath, and Mr Donnelly have been reassigned to administrative duties in the Department of Social Protection.

The Department of Justice said it cannot comment on security matters. A spokesman for Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was not aware of any imminent memo going to Cabinet for approval on this matter.

The cost of the ministerial drivers is about €2.5m a year, which includes wages, expenses, allowances, and maintenance. It was running closer to €6m a year when all senior ministers had a garda driver. The ministerial pool at that stage amounted to 77 full-time and relief drivers.