Gardaí threaten to withdraw co-operation on policing plans for Ireland's presidency of EU next year

The Garda Representative Association (GRA) has threatened to withdraw co-operation from planning for the policing of Ireland’s EU presidency next year.

The association, which represents almost 13,000 frontline gardaí, passed a motion at its annual conference yesterday, saying it will not attend policing planning meetings for the presidency until issues over suspension and entitlements have been resolved.

Ireland will hold the EU presidency from July to December 2026, and during that period, Irish ministers will be responsible for chairing meetings of the EU Council and steering its legislative and policy agenda.

The GRA annual conference, which is being held in Killarney, heard speaker after speaker agree with the motion that the GRA not attend meetings with Garda management to plan for policing of Ireland’s six-month presidency.

The motion’s proposal was said to be “in response to failures to progress issues impacting on our members, including ongoing attempts to reduce conditions of employment and the continued refusal to engage in meaningful consultation on issues critical to welfare and wellbeing”.

Those matters were listed as “subsistence and travel rates; ongoing attempts to reduce injury on duty entitlements; and an agreed suspension policy reflecting input and consultation with the association”.

Brendan O’Connor, delegate for the Donegal division and former GRA president, said that once again gardaí “will be asked to don the green jersey”, leaving their own districts to police EU presidency events, but he warned that the flexibility of rank-and-file members could not be taken for granted.

He said members were working on subsistence and travel rates from “years ago”.

He raised concerns about the lengthy suspensions of gardaí as well as concerns about entitlements for gardaí who become injured on duty.

He said there was a need for Garda management to look at international best practice in relation to suspension of personnel.

For the second year in a row, the GRA has not invited Garda Commissioner Drew Harris to address the conference, and, as a result, justice minister Jim O’Callaghan has declined an invitation to attend.

In a statement issued through the Garda Press Office, Garda management said the commissioner would have dealt directly with the concerns of GRA members at the GRA conference, but the GRA executive had decided to deny him that opportunity.