The Policing Authority has today published its Review of 2021 which provides an overview of the breadth and depth of the work it has undertaken this year. It highlights key areas of focus for the Authority’s oversight, as well as providing data relating to senior Garda appointments, public consultations, and other engagement.

Commenting on the publication of the Review of 2021, Policing Authority Chief Executive, Helen Hall, said:

“The Authority has had another busy and productive year in 2021, the sixth year of its existence, across a range of activities including Authority and Committee meetings, online events, research, Garda appointments, and public engagement. In early 2022, we will publish a new Policing Authority Statement of Strategy, which will set out our ambitions for the coming three years.”

The Authority’s robust oversight of the Garda Síochána continued across a range of topics this year, including the invalid and unwarranted closure of CAD/999 incidents; and drugs policing. Publications included six reports which were submitted to the Minister for Justice on policing during COVID-19, as well as two bi-annual assessments of policing performance.

Throughout the year, the Authority engaged with communities and Joint Policing Committees to hear their experiences of policing, to inform our oversight of policing performance and our interactions with the Garda Commissioner. A large-scale public consultation on Policing Priorities took place in May, and received an unprecedented number of responses.

This year saw the publication of two research reports which were funded by the inaugural Policing Authority Research Bursary, both on the theme of children and policing. In early 2022, the Authority will publish the Policing Priorities for the Garda Síochána 2022-2024, an Assessment of Policing Performance, and the Policing Authority Statement of Strategy 2022-2024.