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GARDA COMMISSIONER NÓIRÍN O’Sullivan says there is “no single cause” that led to almost one million roadside breath tests being officially recorded despite never taking place.
O’Sullivan, together with her senior officers, has made her first appearance before the Policing Authority since the scandals surrounding Garda breath tests and court penalties first broke in late March, at Dublin Castle this morning.
The Commissioner avoided specific answers while being questioned by the authority’s members for the most part.
She said that the issues surrounding breath test recordings was “an issue that we identified ourselves”.
“When an organisation is going through a radical overhaul, it’s inevitable that we will identify good practice and weak practice. This was weak practice. But we mustn’t forget that the overall objective is to save lives, and to improve road-user behaviour,” she said.
O’Sullivan said that she is appointing Assistant Commissioner Michael Finn as a dedicated traffic commissioner in order to shore up the processes surrounding such data recording.
Asked as to how the sheer scale of the false breath tests had been missed by Garda management, O’Sullivan said that it is “too early to arrive at any definitive conclusion as to what led to this”.
“We will get to the bottom to how those figures did not alert local management,” she said.
The indications are that there were a number of factors. Having said that, it is simply not good enough.
Authority member Maureen Lynott suggested that, citing the fact that there was a 495% level of over-reporting in the Dublin West Garda division, it’s a mystery as to how “that kind of distortion did not catch anybody’s attention”.
“It is not reassuring, this business with the breath tests,” she added. “Surely interrogating such data is a basic management function?”
“It’s important that we get to the root cause of the problem, and to emphasise that there is no single cause,” O’Sullivan replied.
We’ve raised it with the chief superintendents and sergeants and inspectors, and everyone is being asked to account for their figures and as to why they didn’t flag with them.
Deputy Commissioner John Twomey added that “a number of things have been done in the last number of years with regard to data collection and classification”. “We need to deal with all the facts in this,” he said.
Authority member Judith Gillespie then asked Assistant Commissioner Finn whether, given the discrepancies seen with breath test statistics, he could be certain that the force’s statistics with regard to fatal road accidents are accurate.
“I’d have no question at all that our road traffic statistics are accurate,” Finn replied.
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Is she serious?
@Stephen Devlin: ‘fraid so.
Why wouldn’t she be? Idiots aren’t capable of joking.
@Stephen Devlin:
Could yo repeat after me Noirin, One Hundred?
Yes your honor. One two three four five ….
They haven’t finished shredding the evidence of gross malpractice yet nor have they managed to get all senior Garda on board with the “public” story. Once this is in place, they can blame the “system” with little or no chance of any answers or accountability forthcoming.
Oh God help us ..More spin from a Garda force that are on their last legs
She said they brought this to light themselves? I thought this was only brought to light in the courts not the gardaí. Now if only there was something out there that could investigate this ask her some tough questions and tell us the answers.
More bulkshit lies – the Gardai didn’t ‘find’ this themselves it was discovered by the supplier of the mouthpieces. Liar in chief needs to buy time to stitch a story together that might get her off the hook – nothing more.
this has been know for over a year now, it is time for our corrupt and incompetent commissioner to go.
Classic survival strategy. Keep kicking the can down the road until the anger subsides. I can’t be the only one who would actually appreciate her coming out and saying “Moral was down, malpractice happened, I hold my hands up, lets fix it”. Why is it always somebody else’s fault? I generally find that if you own up immediately, people think more of you in the long run and generally you wont be fired…
@Larry Fitzwell: No matter how far the can is kicked down the road, she’ll have to go – she (& senior management) either knew about it (complicit) or she (they) didn’t (incompetent). Neither is acceptable.
And not a metion of the corrupt Donegal Superintendent that was raised in the Dail 2 weeks ago. All records “vanished” under Noreen’s watch. FFS.
This follows a pattern if anyone wishes to see. Inflated breath test figures, Inflated arrest figures, Inflated crime solving figures, drop off in number of crimes in specific cases. Now this miracle has occurred despite the fact in reduced gardai numbers. All sane people know that’s not possible. So the question is, who benefit by releasing these figures ?. Obviously the gardai, but the real winners were supposed to be the government who appointed the commissioner until it blew up in their face. The law and order party were caught out, no wonder they won’t admit to no confidence as it will come out she was merely following orders.
nnnnnnnnnnnnnGardai. One nnnnnnnnnnnnnGarda, two nnnnnnnnnnnnnGardai.
Isn’t it great to have a state job, can you just imaging it , and you even get gratuity with the Pension, and some say we”er smart and we punch above our weight, my God!
Kick it down the road FG style ☺
Garda force is full of corruption, example being set at the top and trickles down,which has turned into a river.commissioner has no credibility and the public have no confidence in her.
We have a police force in crisis, following a litany of shocking scandals, we also have a commissioner who cannot be sacked despite the fact that she is implicated in these scandals and has no confidence with the public or the political establishment.
At the same time she makes ridiculous and incredulous statements like this.
We are a international laughing stock at this stage.
This will be watered down within a few weeks.
Sick to death of this one now, excuses excuses, never my fault. Just go away will ya!
Credit where credits due, O’Sullivan has made a fool of state and she continues to do so.
For the same reason that more resources go into arresting and prosecuting people with a gram of weed on them trying to relax after a shit day than actually trying to tackle the massive heroin and prescription drug problem we have in the country – they just want an easy life and lots of glory.
There are many members of the Guards who do their jobs to the best of their ability and want to serve their country, but the powers that be are more focused on headlines and statistics and this is basically their worst nightmare now that their blatant inventing of statistics has been exposed.
The Garda Comissioner looks great to the govt when she’s “ensuring” that millions of breath tests are being done and lots of “drug busts” are being made – but behind those headlines are a few very powerful people fudging the data to make themselves as a body look good. It’s saddening that this has marred the overall perception of the Gardaí because of a few power-tripping and approval/publicity hungry idiots who should be prosecuted themselves for providing illegal data in an official system.
But they won’t be. And this will all be grand in a few weeks cos sure “Ah, lookit, everyone makes mistakes.” Diddly-i leprechaun Irish problem eschewing at its finest.
could it be corrupt Garda were the cause!
Totally unconvincing character. This commissioner is responsible for the loss of public confidence in the Gardai.
The whole rotten force should be disbanded and a Patten type Police Service established.
It’s pointless trying to reform an organisation like the Gardai where a culture of corruption is so long ingrained.
This talk of root and branch nonsense has been tried before, and was useless.
It’s not only the roots and branches that are rotten, the whole entity is diseased…
Totally shambolic department not fit for purpose in the 21st century. Inadequate and corrupt since its foundation its primary function seems to be protecting TDs business interests. A private security firm acting like a police force. We deserve better than this shit.
For how long this shower of clowns from O”Sullivan Circus will be mumbling that herecy?
I was present at the JPC (Joint public committee) public meetings both in Malahide last week and in Balbriggan last night. For those not familiar with these public meetings, they are held annually to allow members of the public raise concerns regarding their local community etc. Representatives of An Garda Síochána along with local public representatives were present to take questions etc. I was present not to raise any concerns myself but simply to watch how the Garda representatives dealt with the public’s concerns. The people present at the Malahide meeting were dealt with far better than those in Balbriggan ). It was a dismal performance to be honest. Lots of note-taking by those at the ‘top-table’, (A Garda Chief Superintendent from the ‘R’ Division and a local inspector………..
@OMG!: ……
…….. from Balbriggan station). Lots of promises were made, but several topics of discussion stood out for me, namely, a man who spoke of how the apartment block he lived in was not a safe place due to lack of secure barriers etc. He claimed , and the local public representatives acknowledged that 12 months ago he had been promised a barrier to keep gangs of youths from damaging and terrorising the residents, a few who are elderly. Despite the promises made 12 months ago, there still was no barrier in place. He received further assurances at last night’s meeting.
@OMG!: A young woman who was accompanied by two of her neighbours highlighted how on her street which has allocated parking, a ‘certain element’ of the community gather in large numbers each day and bring with them several vehicles. This element of Irish society then proceeds to park in the residents’ parking spaces and use the area as an outdoor car repair garage from where they conduct their business, all the while playing the vehicles’ stereos at high volume etc.
This, as the resident stated, is of huge inconvenience and annoyance to the residents who as a result have nowhere to park. She asked a very simple question…. ‘What can be done….?’ Nobody from An Garda Síochána or the public representatives could answer her. ‘It’s a grey area, as the parking area is under private…..
@OMG!: ….management’ etc was one of the answers. The Garda Inspector present did assure her that if the vehicles aren’t taxed/insured that they could be seized under Section 41 of the Road traffic Act but if there was no issue with the vehicles’ tax etc, it wasn’t a Garda responsibility. The resident then asked if she could legally erect bollards, again to blank stares and no answers from those at the ‘Top Table’. What an existence… being under seize everyday from gougers, and both the Gardaí and the public representatives wiping their hands of the issue and not offering any advice to the resident who was suffering at the hands of these gougers.
@OMG!: …..A few people present raised how the local nightclub can attract gangs of youths nearby who terrorise the locals. It was up to the nightclub owners to sort that issue out apparently, according to the Garda Inspector present. He even went as far as to state that it is up to the individual residents to object in court each September to the re-issuing of the nightclub’s licence. Not much use to the residents throughout the upcoming summer months who themselves stressed that the club itself wasn’t to blame but the lack of public order enforcement. The Gardaí then replied that the parents must be held responsible, but at no time acknowledged lack of enforcement by their own members!…..
@OMG!: …..I then watched the policing authority meeting this morning online and watch how the Garda Commissioner emulated the actions and words of the lower ranking Gardaí who were present at the JPC meeting in Balbriggan last evening.
It beggars belief at how unaccountable this organisation appears to be.
Incidentally the Garda Chief Superintendent present at last night’s meeting has been advised in recent weeks that he has been promoted to assistant Garda Commissioner.
Judging by his responses to members of the public last evening in Balbriggan and how good he was at deflecting the responsibility away from An Garda Síochána, he’ll fit in well alongside the Garda Commissioner.
Gift of the gab this one… she has totally convinced me.
There she is again sitting at her press conference table, does she ever pretend to do any work?
Presume she is either covering up something or bleating out some lame excuse.
I don’t read these anymore, I just take out my frustrations in these comments sections
Is she drunk? She should be breathalysed.
What a spineless disgrace as CEO (AKA Commissioner) Ms O’Sullivan is. Blaming everyone at every level of her staff for failures under her watch. No matter who’s to blame, The Buck Stops With You Commissioner ! Take responsibility. Your position demands that .
My family and I suffered harassment at the hands of the gardai for over 30 years and we wonder if there is any redress forthcoming for this?
How can a Garda arrest anyone when the head of the force is a joke? How can there be law and order in this country? The government must resign along with the heads of the Gardai. We need to clean up this cesspool.
Rhubarb rhubarb rhubarb
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