The implementation of a root- and-branch overhaul of the Garda Síochána is to be overseen by a six-person group comprising mainly of leading business figures and chaired by Senator Maurice Hayes.
The group has been appointed by Minister for Justice Michael McDowell and will oversee the implementation of the Garda Síochána Bill, which is expected to been enacted before the summer.
The Bill, which represents the biggest shake-up of the force since the formation of the State, provides for, among other things, the establishment of a new Garda ombudsman, a Garda inspectorate and joint policing committees.
The Garda ombudsman, which will be a three-person office, will be responsible for investigating complaints from the public about gardaí.
It will have its own team of investigators and will bring to an end the practice of serving members of the force investigating their own colleagues.
The Garda inspectorate will be responsible for policy in the force and ensuring that the Garda is run to international best practice standards.
The mooted joint policing committees will provide a forum for gardaí, local authorities and other groups to plan local policy around the State on fighting crime.
Once the Garda Síochána Bill is enacted, the implementation advisory group will report on progress to the Minister within six months.
Mr McDowell said the group had been charged with "giving effect to these very important reform measures".
He said Senator Hayes had been chosen to chair the group because of his "vast experience".
Senator Hayes undertook a review of police complaints which led to the establishment of the Police Ombudsman in Northern Ireland.
He has worked on the Patten Commission, which set out the blueprint for the reform of the RUC to the PSNI.
The other members of the new committee are: John Donnelly, formerly of Deloitte and Touche; Michael Flahive, the assistant secretary of the Department of Justice; Caitríona Murphy, formerly of AIB capital markets; Vincent O'Doherty, Superquinn; and Prof Frances Ruane from the Department of Economics at Trinity College, Dublin.