Garda Band disbandment: The Garda Band was disbanded in November 1965, much to the shock of its 35 members who were told to report for full-time ordinary duties at Garda stations on that day.
The decision to disband the group was taken by the Minister for Justice, Mr Brian Lenihan who said the band had "outlived its usefulness" and the cost of maintaining it was "excessive, wasteful and out of all proportion to any purpose served".
A memo from an official in the Department of Finance said the Minister for Finance, Mr Jack Lynch, believed the cost of the band was "totally unjustifiable" and he strongly urged its disbandment, and the assignment of the members to police duties.
In a letter to Mr Lenihan, Garda representatives warned that the decision "not alone meets with the absolute disapproval of the force, but that it is a development which is certain to gravely undermine the morale of the force, and to create both discontent and dissatisfaction amongst all ranks".
Mr Lenihan met with Garda representatives on December 9th, 1965 and said the decision to disband the band was "final". A memo on the meeting reported a Garda representative saying that pomp and circumstance were important in organisations like the Garda Síochána.
"The Minister said that he personally was opposed to the concept of pomp and circumstance; his own personal view was that, in the country generally, too much attention had been paid to prestige projects".
Mr Lenihan told the Garda delegation that he had sought the frank opinion of gardaí up and down the country and the general reaction was "either one of indifference or of favouring abolition of the band". The composer and conductor, Brian Boydell wrote to the Garda Commissioner, saying the disbanding of the band would be tragedy and he hoped it would be averted.
The band was re-established in 1972 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the Garda Síochána. Mr Des O'Malley was Minister for Justice.
The Department of Justice released about 1,000 files to the National Archives this year, with many highlighting ongoing squabbling between the Garda Síochána and the Department of Finance over funding.
One particularly bulky file concerns a request from Garda headquarters for the rental of a photocopier for three months.
The request was first made in February 1965 on the basis that the Garda Technical Bureau needed to copy at least 6,000 fingerprint forms. A letter from Garda Headquarters pointed out that the rental of the photocopier would actually save money, as it was cheaper to photocopy the forms than to photograph them.
However, the Department of Finance took a different view and maintained that the photocopying of 6,000 forms would only take one week. "Accordingly, the hiring of a machine specially for this purpose would not seem justified," an official wrote.
He then suggested that the gardaí use the photocopier in the Four Courts, or the photocopier at the Department of Defence. This suggestion was dismissed by Garda Headquarters because of the highly confidential nature of criminal records. " . . . the possibility of their being copied or examined by civilians or members of the Defence Forces, even under the supervision of the gardaí, creates a precedent with possible serious consequences".
Garda Headquarters wrote again, warning that 100,000 convicts' records were in danger of being lost in the event of a fire if they were not photocopied and copies filed in divisional offices.
Almost three years after the request was made, the Minister for Finance, Mr Charlie Haughey sanctioned the rental of the photocopier.
A file of correspondence built up over a £1.50 per head buffet for a function welcoming the Zurich Police Band to Dublin in 1974.
The Department of Justice had sought sanction for a buffet being provided for dignitaries attending a recital by the visiting band. "The refreshments would comprise a drink, tea/coffee, sandwiches, savouries and trifle," a Department official wrote.
The Department of Finance replied, saying the projected £472.50 cost would have to be reduced, as the Department of Justice's allocation for miscellaneous expenses for the whole year was £300.
However, Garda Headquarters submitted a bill for £435. This was queried by the Department of Justice and the gardaí said the request to reduce the guest numbers was made too late.
Besides, the £1.50 per head charge was very conservative as it included at least two drinks per head, the Garda public relations officer pointed out.
