Press release
New competition launched to appoint a Police Ombudsman
Published on
Last updated on
Published on
Last updated on
The Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has today launched a recruitment competition to appoint the Police Ombudsman in accordance with the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024. The competition will be conducted by the Public Appointments Service. The competition is available on the Public Jobs website.
As provided for in the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024, the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) will be reconstituted as “Fiosrú” on commencement of the Act later this year. The current three Commissioner model will be replaced by a single head of the organisation, the Police Ombudsman, supported by a Deputy Police Ombudsman and a Chief Executive Officer.
GSOC has approximately 160 employees, at present, and has been provided with a budget of €19.6 million for 2024, which is a 17% increase on the 2023 budget.
Speaking about the new role, Minister McEntee said:
“The position of Police Ombudsman in Fiosrú is critical to maintaining public confidence in An Garda Síochána into the future. It is a very important role which will require both dynamic leadership and the ability to manage change. The successful candidate will be required to guide a reorganised corporate body through a significant change in structure and expansion in remit, leading the organisation to achieve the very highest standards of service delivery, respectful of the rights of complainants and members of An Garda Síochána.”
Referring to the fact that the Act also provides for comprehensive reform of the current GSOC system, the Minister continued:
“The establishment of Fiosrú will build on the vital work carried out by GSOC since its establishment in 2007. Its development has been informed by the Commission on the Future of Policing’s recommendations on how an enhanced service can be provided. This is a pivotal time for policing reform in Ireland, with a suite of significant reform measures being implemented which will deliver longstanding benefits for the delivery of policing in Ireland.”
Under the Act, the independence, organisation, and governance of GSOC is addressed, with the new body Fiosrú expanding its remit and overhauling its processes and procedures.
The changes will ensure that all complaints, other than an agreed list of service level complaints, will be investigated by Fiosrú. This will result in more independent assessment of allegations of Garda wrong-doing, including those that are identified other than by way of complaints from members of the public.
Overall, the changes will greatly strengthen the existing mechanisms for Garda accountability, enhance transparency and improve efficiency of the complaints process. As was the case with GSOC, the Police Ombudsman, subject to the provisions of the Act, will be independent in the performance of his or her functions.
The closing date for applications is 3pm on Thursday, 29 February 2024.
Link to the competition can be found here: https://www.publicjobs.ie/en/?option=com_jobsearch&view=jobdetails&Itemid=263&cid=185111&campaignId=2457805
Link to Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024, as passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas, can be found here: https://data.oireachtas.ie/ie/oireachtas/bill/2023/3/eng/ver_c/b03c23d-p-c-sent.pdf
The Policing, Security and Community Safety Act 2024 was developed based on the recommendations of the Commission on the Future of Policing which reported in 2018 having comprehensively examined all aspects of policing including all functions carried out by An Garda Síochána and the totality of the oversight arrangements.
It provides for a new framework for policing and community safety aimed at improving the performance and accountability of our police service to the benefit of the safety of communities, and new arrangements for national security.
Fiosrú is to be formally established under Part 5 of the new Policing Security and Community Safety (PCSC) Act 2024.
The Police Ombudsman, subject to the provisions of the Act, will be independent in the performance of his or her functions.
Fiosrú will have its own Vote and the CEO will be the accounting officer.
Among the functions of the Police Ombudsman are:
The current number of staff in the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission as of January 2024 is 160 employees. The GSOC budget for 2024 is €19.6 million which is an increase of 17% on 2023.