Message from the President
Dear Colleagues,Today the country goes to the polls to cast their votes in the 2016 General Election. AGSI launched a grassroots election campaign seeking a commitment from candidates on where they stand on issues affecting members of this Association.I would like to thank Branch Secretaries and all members who participated at a local level. Head Office will now work on the results of that campaign and use the information in post-election lobbying and PR campaigns.We are determined to get a more satisfactory outcome on the pay of members this year.There are also National Executive and Presidential elections looming for our own members and I would like to wish everyone seeking election for the first time or indeed re-election the very best of luck. It is not an easy task to put your name forward so remember that when the candidates are canvassing you.Arrangements are at an advanced stage for the 2016 AGSI Annual Delegate Conference being held in Westport this year on 11,12 and 13 April. I would like to acknowledge the work of the Mayo Branch in this regard also.As always we will keep you abreast of developments on all issues and similarly we ask you to contact us if there are issues afoot affecting you or members in your Branch.Kind Regards,Tim Galvin President
Meetings & Updates
Meeting with D/Commissioner re proposed move from Harcourt Square On the 20th January an AGSI delegation met with the Deputy Commissioner for Strategy and Change Management to discuss the proposed move from Harcourt Square. This is a significant development and one that will have serious implications for our members on a number of fronts. The meeting provided little in the way of detail on where people might be deployed to. While a number of locations were mentioned including Airton Road, East Point Business Park, Santry and Ashtown Gate, no exact details were available. The shortcomings of these locations were highlighted and the need for urgent engagement was expressed. As we speak, and despite numerous reminders, AGSI have not had any follow up meeting in relation to the move and no engagement to address members’ concerns. We will continue to press for a meeting and for active engagement as soon as possible.
Meeting GHQ Traffic Conference Room re proposed HQ Directive Sec 87, Road Traffic Act, 2010 Chief Superintendent, National Traffic Bureau invited AGSI to a meeting to discuss a proposed Directive to address Section 87 of the Road Traffic Act, 2010 Management are proposing issuing a Headquarters Directive detailing how members on duty can apply to have FCPS notices cancelled. On the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions it will be necessary for members to provide sufficient details to show that no one was put in danger as a result of their response above the speed limit, to a call. AGSI are still considering this proposed Directive. In a separate meeting AGSI were invited to view and provide feedback on the livery of the Regional Support Vehicles. AGSI had concerns about the similarity of the proposed livery to markings on existing patrol cars. These views were expressed by National Executive member Paul Wallace and Cormac Moylan and Garda Management took them on board in agreeing the new livery for RSU vehicles.
Meeting regarding Review of An Garda Síochána under Haddington Road You will recall that AGSI provided details of our meeting with the Minister for Justice on 27th January. That meeting focused exclusively on the need for the Review under the Haddington Road Agreement (HRA) to commence and the FEMPI Legislation which imposed a two-year incremental pay freeze on our members. The Minister promised to finalise the official submission to the Review and request the facilitator to convene a meeting in the immediate future.On the 16th February the President, Tim Galvin, Deputy General Secretary, John Jacob and Secretary Donal Smyth attended a meeting with Ray McGee, the facilitator of the Review under the HRA. Also in attendance were delegations from the GRA, the Superintendents Association, the Association of Chief Superintendents’, as well as Garda Management, The Department of Justice and the Department of Public Expenditure & Reform.AGSI have received the Official sides’ submission and a copy of the GRA’s submission. We also made a submission ourselves.The meeting outlined how the facilitator would now commence a series of individual meetings with the various interested parties. Once these were concluded we will be reconvened as a group for round table discussions. At the outset AGSI pointed out that the Official Submission was limited in its scope and did not meet the terms of reference as outlined in the HRA. We also emphasised the need for the talks to be conducted without any pre-conditions which would limit our ability to negotiate on our members behalf. We also emphasised the need for the European Social Committee decision to be implemented in full.The facilitator indicated that he hopes to have the Review concluded by the end of April. It is difficult to see how this deadline can be achieved considering the scope of the Review as outlined in the HRA.This was the first meeting and while it only outlined the approach to be taken, it is the first engagement since the Review was proposed and which gives us any indication that the process is now commenced. AGSI anticipate this will not be an easy process. We will keep you up to date as we progress through the talks.
ICT Partnership Sub-Group Meeting A meeting of the ICT Partnership sub-group took place on 16th February at which AGSI was represented by Brian O’Dea. The meeting dealt with the ICT business plan and progress on IT projects. Specific discussion took place on AVPLS in which AGSI provided input into the policy document which is now gone to the Commissioner. Training in relation to PULSE releases and AVPLS will be rolled out by the Strategic Transformation Office in due course. Mobile device management is currently being piloted with Senior Officers in relation to mobile access to PULSE; progress is being monitored as present. A tender for roster management is also being progressed.
Ray McGee Review – AGSI Submission
The Association presented its submission to the Review of An Garda Síochána last week. You can download and read the full submission by clicking here.
Study of Roles & Responsibilities
Head Office is undertaking a piece of work on the roles and responsibilities of Sergeants and Inspectors. We want to ascertain the exact nature of role creep, time spent on administrative duties, where expertise is being wasted/diluted and how management is dealing with same. We will be in contact with Branch Secretaries in due course with more details.
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