President ADC Address to Garda Commissioner

President Address to Commissioner Justin Kelly:

Commissioner, Firstly I wish to Thank you for attending our 48th Garda Representative Annual Delegate Conference.  It is our Pleasure to welcome you here  today.  Having you, our Commissioner here is of major importance and significance to our membership and our Delegates.  
From you assuming your position as Commissioner in September last year, you have shown a professionalism, respect and manner which has been welcomed by our members, your Gardaí and the Public alike.  We as an Association and I as President of the largest of the  Representative Bodies have found you to listen carefully to our concerns and issues and we are grateful for your commitment and your promise to effect positive change where you can. 
 
Commissioner what we need today however, is a clear and progressive move on those commitments and undertakings, or we are left with empty promises.  The delay and procrastination, we your employees have endured, have gone on for far  too long and in order to ensure the complete support of our members which we want to offer you, and we honestly  hope you can enjoy, we need more than words, we need action.
 
We in this room are all educated and experienced people, and we understand the difficulties of a large organisation, and how you as CEO of that organisation may struggle to bring about quick effective and progressive change.  But it is this quick progressive meaningful change that is required to satisfy not only the needs of your members but the needs of the Society we Police.  
 
We have struggled through meaningful and honest negotiations to effect this progressive change in An Garda Siochana, often by the lack of commitment of members of your Senior Leadership team and at times to be fair from external and Governmental Departments, who have in the past applied delay tactics and obfuscation and hampered negotiations and progress.  This has a significant impact on Morale within the job, and all of us know the detrimental impact low morale has on it’s workforce.
 
We have long highlighted the concerns of our membership.  These have been well documented and articulated by us in the GRA over the years to all Stakeholders including your office and Senior leadership team. 
Unfortunately many remain ongoing for many years through no fault of our Association, and still, many show little true progress since you took up office.  I do not stand here today blaming you personally, nor do I want to single out individuals, but the blame must lie in your office and that means specifically some of your Senior Leadership Team which leaves our members  terms and conditions less favourable to every other Irish worker
Sub & Travel negotiations have endured unacceptable and intolerable delays at a huge cost to our members.  To stand here today and for us to accept the answer as we are almost at conclusion of the new Scheme is disingenuous and unfair.  We have been subjected to terms and conditions less favourable to every other Irish worker.
 
Suspension Policy.  Our members are left languishing in financial and mental hardship, many for years at a time.  Only to be exonerated of all fault at the end of Investigative or Criminal proceedings.  We have members and colleagues left languishing on suspension, often times for years and denied due process and fair procedure. Earlier today this room heard from some of these members.  And Commissioner, the stories that were told were shameful, upsetting and disturbing. How can members of An Garda Síochána be treated so disrespectfully and with such utter contempt? The message was resounding from this floor here today.  These members deserve a full independent public inquiry into their experience and we also insist on a full review and overhaul in relation to the current suspension policy. All you going to back us?
 
Conduct & Performance Regulations which came into effect in April 2025,  were Introduced with no internal policies in place, and no clarity for those affected.  Most concerning is the lack of an Independent Appeals process, in any of the Regulations, no meaningful minor Breaches of discipline are reflected in the Regulations including within the Performance Regulations.  In the absence of any conviction of any nature, you the Garda Commissioner can dismiss a member without right of appeal.  Commissioner we ask you today would these lack of protections be acceptable or appropriate to any other employe of the State.  These result in terms and conditions of our members less favourable to every other Irish worker.
 
Recruitment & Retention. One of the most difficult areas for any employer to deal with can be Recruitment, however Retention is often completely within the remit of the employer and this is an area that causes the greatest challenge for our members, they feel lack of resources, lack of Training, overarching oversight, unrealistic workloads, inordinate delays in the introduction of modern equipment with rollouts on pilot for extended periods, causing mental strain, disillusionment and low morale.  This is consistently cited by members resigning from the Force when exit interviews are carried out by us, why?  because of terms and conditions of our members are less favourable to any other Irish worker.
 
Fuel Protest & Blockades.  Recently we have experienced Fuel Protests and Blockades which ground our country to a halt.  Where was the plan of Government? and most importantly where was the plan of our Senior Leadership team?  Our members had rest days cancelled overnight, there was little or no clarity as to their roles, their duties, temporary transfers or temporary absences, causing them to report for duty not knowing where they were going from one end of the tour to the other, no understanding of entitlements only to find further extensions to Declarations of the Exceptional event leaving them further demoralized and angered, why?  Because of terms and conditions less favourable to any other Irish worker.
 
Spontaneous Pursuit Policy and Driving at Work Policy Commissioner probably one of the most recent and media reported topics outside of the Fuel crisis and resultant Blockades.  Our members, often our most vulnerable, namely young untrained members who are driving patrol cars find themselves responding to serious incidents, or pursuing vehicles involved in crime who refuse to stop. These members are increasingly finding themselves subject to investigations, discipline or prosecution for carrying out their role and function as Gardaí, when attempting to apprehend offenders and bring them to justice.  While you have spoken publicly about your engagement with Ministers and Departments, and their positive response to your concerns, we need to ensure a Threshold of a higher level for our members in the execution of their duties, The comprehensive Driver Training Programme and an examination of a Professional Driving licence to protect our members, or we are continue to endure terms and conditions less favourable to any other Irish worker.
 
Commissioner, we invited you here today to hear the ongoing concerns and challenges affecting our members - your employees - and we respectfully ask that you act on these issues and engage with the Garda Representative Association for the benefit of all delegates in this room and the members that they proudly represent.