The largest Garda staff body has said a “breakdown in trust” is the main reason why it has decided against issuing an invitation to Garda Commissioner Drew Harris to attend its annual conference in the coming weeks.
The decision of the Garda Representative Association (GRA) not to invite Mr Harris was made following a vote by the central executive committee at its meeting in Dublin on Thursday.
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee described the move as being part of the “repeated personalisation” of industrial relations issues.
It is the first time the GRA, which represents about 11,000 rank and file gardaí in a 14,000-strong force, has not invited the commissioner of the day to its conference, which is by far its biggest and most public event of the year.
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Former Minister for Justice Michael McDowell was also not invited to address GRA conferences in 2006 and 2007 in a row over the introduction at the time of the unpaid and part-time Garda Reserve.
The GRA last year voted no confidence in Mr Harris, in another unprecedented move, by a majority of almost 99 per cent. That no confidence motion was put to GRA members during a row over Garda rosters and amid claims of low morale and increasing resignations.
GRA president, Brendan O’Connor, on Friday said the decision not to invite Mr Harris to the association conference in late April “simply reflects the breakdown in trust in the relationship between the commissioner and the rank and file members”.
He added the gardaí the GRA represents “gave us a unanimous and unambiguous indication of their feelings last September” during the vote of no confidence.
The decision of the central executive committee “was arrived at after a very honest and forthright debate” and after executive members had consulted with divisional representatives “during which the strength of feeling about unresolved issues was very evident”.
Mr O’Connor added the GRA “could not maintain credibility if the commissioner is afforded an opportunity to articulate a management perspective and message at a conference” which was the “primary forum to reflect the very real concerns and frustrations” of gardaí.
Many of those concerns arose as a “direct result of initiatives and policies implemented by the commissioner in the absence of meaningful consultation”. The issues that resulted in the no confidence motion being passed so overwhelmingly had not been resolved and were still felt very strongly by rank and file gardaí.
“At a time when our members feel increasingly vulnerable and exposed to danger, they require stability and support from internal structures,” Mr O’Connor said. “Unfortunately this is not the case and these challenges have coincided with a programme of change, much of which has been implemented with minimal consultation and often without training.”
There was an “overarching atmosphere of fear created by the overzealous application of discipline and oversight”, undermining the ability of gardaí “to do their jobs with confidence”.
Ms McEntee’s office issued a brief statement, in response to queries, confirming she had received an invitation to the GRA conference.
“She notes the ongoing industrial relations issues but regrets the repeated personalisation of them as she believes dialogue and interaction are the only way forward in such situations,” the statement added.
In response to queries, Garda Headquarters said: “Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has not received any formal notification from the Central Executive Committee of the Garda Representative Association and cannot comment as he is not aware of the rationale for their decision.”
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