Conference Report 2016

Section 1: Pay and Allowances
The ‘spare time’ activities explicitly prohibited
include:
• Holding, or being a director of a company, which
holds a licence for the sale of intoxicating liquor
• Holding a licence for public dancing
• Holding a bookmaker’s licence
• Holding any licence or permit that is issued by the
Circuit or District Court or the Revenue
Commissioners or An Garda Síochána involving
gain to the holder
• Managing or conducting or assisting in the
management or conducting, on an ongoing basis,
of a concern or premises which is required by law
to be operated under a licence, permit or
certificate, the grant of which may be opposed by
An Garda Síochána, save for the bona fide
involvement by any member of An Garda Síochána
in the managing or conducting or assisting in the
management or conducting of any registered club
within the meaning of the Regulation of Clubs
(Ireland) Act, 1904 as amended
• Engaging personally in any part-time employment,
such as that of security officer or private
investigator, in the course of which there is a
likelihood that the member’s office as a member
of the Service or Garda powers may be called
upon
• Acting as agent or enumerator for a government
department or semi-state body collecting
statistics or carrying out a survey except with the
authority of the Commissioner
• Engaging in the delivery of goods to customers of
shops, supermarkets or other business premises
except with the permission of the member’s
Divisional Officer.
• Engaging in business as driving instructors or tutors
• Driving school buses
• Acting as directors or secretaries of security
firms, or being concerned in any way in security
work, as a spare-time activity
• Being members of a band (other than the band of
An Garda Síochána) consisting of either members
of An Garda Síochána or members of An Garda
Síochána and others, advertising or purporting to
represent the band as a Garda band, group or
other such title which could imply that the band
was the band of An Garda Síochána performing
under the directions of the Commissioner
• Serving summonses either as a spare time
activity or otherwise than in accordance with Rule
46.1 of the District Court Rules
• Selling insurance, or acting as agents or
representatives of insurance or assurance
companies, or other activity in connection with
the insurance business, other than activity in the
conduct of a member’s private affairs
• Engaging in, acting or being employed as
transport managers as defined in Regulation 2(1)
of the European Communities (Merchandise Road
Transport) Regulations, 1991.
3.44 While many of the prohibited ‘spare time’ activities
are listed, there is also an overarching restriction,
whereby the Garda Commissioner can prevent
members of An Garda Síochána from engaging in
other spare time activities if such activities are:
• likely to interfere with proper discharge of duties
• likely to give rise to reasonable apprehension
among members of the public in relation to
impartiality in the discharge of duties
• for good and stated reasons inappropriate for
members of the Service to engage in
3.45 In contrast with the types of restrictions applied to
other public servants and police forces across
Europe, the extent of restricted activity gardaí are
subject to is considerable. For example, having
investigated this subject of ‘restrictions’ on ‘spare
time’ activities, the Standing Committee of Police in
Europe concluded that:
“It was evident that few restrictions were placed on
the private lives of officers, other than the general
rule not to bring the Service into disrepute. The
ability to take part in politics was widespread and in
two countries, policemen had become Members of
Parliament. Involvement in other employment was
commonplace.”
Restrictions to Supplement Income
3.46 A significant constraint on gardaí to offset the impact
of the recession is that they are obliged to refrain
from any activity that is likely to interfere (or give the
impression of interfering) with the impartial discharge
of their duties. This has particular relevance to the
38th Annual Delegate Conference
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