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Process to recruit new Garda Board begins

Details of the recruitment process for a new board of an Garda Síochána have been announced.

The board is aimed at strengthening the management and internal governance of the force.

It is being formed ahead of the commencement of the Policing Security and Community Safety (PSCS) Bill, which passed all stages of the Seanad on 24 January.

Expressions of interest

The bill provides that the members of the Garda Board will be appointed by the Minister for Justice from persons recommended by the Public Appointments Service (PAS) as suitable after an open selection process.

The PAS is now seeking expressions of interest for the appointment of a chair and eight ordinary board members. The closing date is 15 February (3pm).

Appointments to the Board will be for a period of up to four years.

‘No operational role’

The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said that the board would not have any role in operational matters, but reflected the fact that a non-executive board was a corporate-governance standard in the public and private sectors.

“The board will also support the Garda Commissioner by ensuring that the organisation has the most appropriate systems, processes and procedures in place to deliver a top-class policing service in the State,” she stated.

“It is not, however, a substitute for robust external oversight of an Garda Síochána, and will in no way dilute the work of the new external oversight body to be established under the bill – the Policing and Community Safety Authority,” the minister added.