GOVERNMENT Ministers are currently deliberating on one of the most important decisions they can take about crime in the State. In the coming days they will announce a successor to Mr Patrick Culligan, the Garda Commissioner. The choice will not only affect the way the Garda operates, it will send a signal about the type of force the Government wants.

The decision comes at a critical time. With the Manchester bombing and the killing of Garda Jerry McCabe in Adare, at least part of the IRA is clearly back in action. Recent arms and explosives finds are grim reminders of its potency.

Meanwhile, the jails are full to overflowing, illegal drug use has grown and, although the crime figures for this year should show a decline, 1995 had the highest rate of serious crimes since the early 1980s. The decision comes at a time when crime is a major public issue expected to dominate the next general election campaign.

Meanwhile, organisation and discipline within the force has become a matter of concern in political circles. The Garda Representative Association is caught up in a continuing row with the breakaway Garda Federation, which represented up to 2,000 members of the force before itself splitting last month.

Over the last year, a GRA spokesman has publicly questioned the competence of the Minister for Justice, Mrs Owen, while the Federation has threatened to disrupt the Government's EU Presidency by suggesting what amounts to a "work to rule" among its Dublin members during summit meetings in the city. In addition, a garda was recalled from Cyprus for telling a visiting Fine Gael minister about the merits of Fianna Fail. (The Garda has resisted the recall in the courts and a full hearing has yet to be held.)

Choosing a commissioner is not only about finding someone who will ensure the force is run efficiently, it is also about showing the public that someone's in charge.

While the head of a semi-state company or agency may be chosen by its board, at one remove from Government, the Garda is a vital arm of the State and Ministers' retain close control.

Commissioners are chosen after normal conversations among Ministers about their preferences, a critical process in a coalition government if a cabinet argument is to be avoided. The Minister for Justice then brings a memorandum to Government, normally suggesting one person for the job.

In recent weeks, some politicians floated the idea of appointing someone from outside the force to the £65,000 a year post. But that is not expected to happen. With only a couple of exceptions since the foundation of the State, Garda Commissioners have been chosen from within the force, usually from the ranks of the deputy commissioners, and occasionally from the third most senior layer the assistant commissioners. In the 1940s and 1950s, the commissionership was held by senior Department of Justice civil servants. That experiment was not a success.

There are two deputy commissioners, and these are the prime candidates to succeed Mr Culligan when he retires on July 20th.

The deputy commissioner in charge of operations is Mr Patrick Byrne. Mr Byrne turned 50 in February, he was born in Knockagree, Co Cork. The son of a superintendent, he also had two uncles in the force. One uncle, Billy Byrne, became a superintendent in Dublin and is best remembered for investigating allegations of double voting by Mr Charles Haughey's election agent, Mr Pat O'Connor, in 1982.

Married with four children, Patrick Byrne joined the force in September, 1965. It took him 13 years to make sergeant but after that their progress was rapid. He became an inspector in 1985, studied at the FBI Academy in the US in 1986 and made superintendent in 1988. He was promoted to chief superintendent in 1991, a rank he held for only eight months before being promoted to assistant commissioner in January, 1992, the month Charles Haughey agreed to resign as Taoiseach. He rose to his current position in 1994.

He has spent almost all his career based in Dublin and on the "operations" rather than administration, side of the force.

Within the force Mr Byrne is considered a capable, "hands on" manager. His operational work, including his years at the crime and security branch in Dublin, is the sort that tends to be more visible to those in the force than outside it. Yet Mr Byrne has been long enough at headquarters to benefit from the "shop window" it offers senior gardai the chance through security briefings to display themselves to politicians.

Behind the scenes he is a vigorous promoter of the force. It was he who finally persuaded the Department of Justice to finance a Garda air wing.

He also appears dynamic compared to many others in senior Garda positions. When so much public discussion of the "crime wave" is actually about a heightened fear of crime, this public relations aspect to the job perhaps not always enjoyed by the rather reticent, incumbent is an important factor.

Commissioners are appointed for seven years. Under 1990 regulations, the retirement age was reduced from 65 to 60. Were Mr Byrne to get the job, he would be retiring aged 57.

The other main contender is Mr P.J. Moran. Born in Newport, Co Mayo, Patrick Moran's later education was in Maynooth college and at the University of Manchester, from which he holds a masters degree in Education.

Married with four children, Mr Moran joined the force in 1954. He made sergeant in 1960, inspector 10 years later and was promoted to Superintendent in 1977, when he was transferred to the training branch. In 1981, he became chief superintendent, and assistant commissioner in 1988, when he served as director of the Garda College at Templemore.

MORE than anyone else in the Garda, Mr Moran is responsible for the modern facilities of Templemore and senior officers wandering across the campus entertain each other with stories of how P.J. managed to obtain cash for this or that building from some reluctant Minister.

Along with Mr Culligan and the former Deputy Commissioner, Mr Thomas O'Reilly, Mr Moran was one of the "three wise men" who drew up improved Garda management procedures following the O'Grady kidnapping in 1987.

As deputy commissioner in charge of administration a post which he attained in 1991 Mr Moran is responsible for the finances, services, personnel, training and research of the 10,700 member force He was considered a candidate for the job of commissioner ahead of Mr Culligan's appointment in 1990.

Mr Moran has a keen interest in the academic side of policing. It was he who organised the Garda's contribution to the international crime conference held in Dublin last week. He was almost certainly the only speaker at it quoting Socrates and Anstotle from his own reading.

Mr Moran's manner is quiet he speaks in hushed tones and listens attentively, with a manner which has been compared to that of a concerned parish priest. But it disguises his abilities as a firm manager with a quick and clever mind.

If the Government made Mr Moran commissioner he could serve until the age of 65 (the 1990 regulations allow the later retirement age for anyone at assistant commissioner rank or above who was aged 55 when they were introduced). But he is now 63, so appointment would mean a term of less than two years. With a general election due by late next year, Ministers realise appointing Mr Moran would mean the post becoming vacant again early in the lifetime of the next Government.

There is a possibility of an assistant commissioner taking the top job, although this is considered unlikely. Following a reorganisation of the force in January, when four chief superintendents became regional assistant commissioners, the third rank now offers a wider choice not just for commissioner, but to fill a vacancy at deputy commissioner level.

Among those tipped to ascend the ranks is assistant commissioner, Mr Noel Conroy (53), a native of Mayo who has served most of his later career under Mr Byrne in crime and security operations in Dublin. He was awarded a Scott Medal for bravery in 1981 for the arrest of an armed gang in the city and led the team which arrested the murderer, Malcolm McArthur, in 1982. However, he has overall charge of extradition matters, and the Government's embarrassment over last month's accidental shredding of an original extradition document is considered a factor which might count against him.

Another considered likely to move up is Mr Peter Fitzgerald (53). He has progressed rapidly through the senior ranks from superintendent in 1988 to chief superintendent in 1992 and assistant commissioner in 1994. He is currently commissioner of the UN police force in the former Yugoslavia, having previously served in Namibia and Cambodia. Earlier this year, the Minister for Justice departed from her script at a Garda Sergeants and Inspectors conference to praise Mr Fitzgerald's work, a digression which raised a few eyebrows.

Among the new assistant commissioners, the southeastern regional commander, Mr Jim McHugh (55), and the northern regional commander, Mr Tom King (50), are considered very capable. Most of Mr McHugh's service has been in crime operations in Dublin stations, while Mr King was at headquarters for much of his career.

Assistant Commissioners Mr Hugh Sreenan at headquarters, Mr Tommy O'Leary (now eastern regional commander), Mr Pat O'Toole (responsible for the Dublin Metropolitan area) and Mr Martin McQuinn (now southern regional commander) are all seen as contenders for more senior posts.

A decision by Ministers is expected within days.