The body that represents rank and file gardai has restated its opposition to routinely arming members of the force – but wants more specialist gun gardai.
Garda Representative Association President Brendan O’Connor was speaking after Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said he would support a request to arm gardai.
Mr Varadkar, who becomes Taoiseach for the second time next month, said the issue is one for Garda Commissioner Drew Harris – but he would support him if he asked for it.
But Garda O’Connor, who represents more than 11,000 rank and file members of the force, said that his colleagues did not want a routinely armed force.
The Garda is one of the few officers in the world that do not have all officers armed – but Garda O’Connor says his members want to keep it that way.
Instead, he said, they want to remain unarmed – but have better access to armed support in a crisis.
He said: “The view of this association has always been that we are not in favour of the routine arming of uniformed Gardai but we have consistently called for greater availability of armed personnel to be called upon when required.
"We believe there should be a capability to deploy armed personnel from within existing district and divisional resources to complement the current Armed Support Unit model in order to help us protect ourselves and the public without having to resort to a fully armed force.”
And he also repeated calls for front line gardai to be given taser stun guns – to offer more protection on the streets.
He said: “It has been association policy for many years that Tasers should be made more widely available and the appropriate training put in place for every member of An Garda Siochana willing to carry one as well as the urgent need for body-worn camera devices that will act as both a deterrent and provide vital real-time footage of incidents to aid with prosecutions.
"We also believe that we require more armed units across the country as the vast distances to be travelled when responding to critical incidents has exposed weaknesses in availability in some locations.”
Garda O’Connor also said that officers were increasingly wary of using their already provided Asp batons and pepper spray canisters – in case they were charged by investigators.
He said: "Another problem that we have seen evolving in recent years is a hesitancy among the membership to use their personal protection equipment for fear of finding themselves subjected to levels of scrutiny and accountability that are excessive and disproportionate.
“We have unfortunately seen a number of instances where Gardai have faced investigation and prosecution before the courts only to be vindicated and found not guilty.
Some aspects of policing are unpleasant and place members in situations where they must resort to using force but increasingly members are being conditioned to believe they will be exposed and vulnerable even when they act completely within the training they have been given.
"This has led many members to 'second guess' themselves when under attack and trying to defend themselves and the public."
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mr Varadkar said he was appalled by recent attacks on gardai, including an incident in which two officers were assaulted in Ballyfermot, south-west Dublin and for which several people have already been charged.
He also admitted people were more worried in their homes and on the streets even though there had not been a spike in assaults.
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