Obscure process for naming commissioner

If things go as normal, the name of the next Garda commissioner will be announced after a Cabinet conclave.

There may be no white smoke, but the process will be as obscure as any in the Vatican, although few if any will credit the Holy Spirit with influencing the outcome.

Given the recent history of the Garda and the fact that its morale is on the ground, it cannot be business as usual. There is a need for many new beginnings in policing and one of them should be an open process of appointment for the Commissioner.