This week’s meeting of the Joint Policing Committee of Galway City Council got off to a stormy start when councillors complained that they felt untrusted by Gardai because the crime stats reports normally furnished before a meeting would not be circulated until afterwards.
Chief Supt Gerry Roche, who was attending his first meeting of the JPC since his appointment to head the Galway West Division said that he preferred to wait until after a report was delivered and explained before releasing it to councillors.
He said that this was the format used in other areas where he had served on JPCs. He also felt that it was desirable that the crime stats be explained to councillors by a Garda data analyst before the report finds its way into the media.
“It is practice that when a report goes before the commitee, it goes out after the committee and not before. It takes a lot of time but if they want it circulated in advance, it can be done, provided it is kept confidential. These figures are provisional figures and can change between analysis and delivery,” he said, adding that having a data analyst explain the context of the figures was necessary.”
However, councillors felt slighted at any suggestion that they might leak it to media.
Cllr Donal Lyons said that this was unprecedented and that there was not any way they could comment on a report if they were only hearing it for the first time minutes beforehand.
Cllr Frank Fahy said that this suggestion sounded like councillors could not be trusted with the garda report.
“This should be discussed at a meeting. This decision should have been made by the members, and it is unacceptable in my book. There hasn’t been a case where members of the JPC have released it to the media before a meeting.
“I might as well tune out for the next half hour, if I don’t have the report.
“Do I have to rely on the minutes to discuss the report. My hands are tied behind my back here,” he added.
Cllr Eddie Hoare said that procedures and standing orders for the meeting were determined at the start of the Council in 2019 and that he was unsure if a decision like this could be taken midstream in the Committee’s lifetime.
Cllr Michael Crowe said that it is the substance and not the timing of the report that concerns him.
“It doesn’t matter to me whether I get it now or in half an hour. What’s more important is what’s in the report. Chief Supt explained that they need to be explained using data analysis. We should see how this procedure goes.
“On occasions some information does get out but if the gardai are more comfortable presenting it this way, then we should go along with it. We can’t be kicking and screaming about not getting the report. This is not an issue,” he said.
However, his party colleague Cllr Cheevers disagreed, saying that the row was not an ideal start for the Chief Supt’s first JPC meeting.
“I don’t think we’re getting off to a great start and we’ve always had the opportunity to put down questions when we’ve had the report
“Getting the report at the end is not really adequate, and there needs to be trust between members of the JPC and the elected members.
“A bit gets out to the media and that’s how things happen, but we need the report in front of us,” he said, while Tommy Flaherty suggested that as a compromise the report can be published and then handed out to the councillors.
