The "blue flu" and the crisis which now threatens to engulf the Garda was a disaster waiting to happen. Ever since tempers flared at the Garda Representative Association (GRA) annual conference four years ago, it has been clear that the force is in some disarray.

The issue is partly about personalities. But it also about pay. The politicians have much to answer for.

In opposition, Fianna Fail met the GRA and appeared to signal that there would be money on the table when the party returned to government. The GRA is now looking to the Government to deliver; but the Government's main fiscal priority, the need to dampen down inflationary pressures in the economy, appears to rule out a hefty increase for the Garda.

The stakes in the dispute have been raised by the supposed "blue flu" epidemic - in effect, the first withdrawal of labour in the Garda's proud history.

More action is now being planned, including two or three-day national protests. There is some loose talk about ongoing "sick" leave and, of course, possible disruption of the Tour de France.

The refusal of the AGSI (Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors) to provide cover for rank-and-file officers who may take industrial action has made the situation still more serious. We appear to be lurching towards what one opposition deputy has already called "a national crisis" involving the Garda.

The GRA, of course, is not a trade union. It has the status of a staff association which has been established by statute and can be disestablished only by statute.

Association policy on the subject of trade union affiliation is somewhat contradictory. Its policy clearly supports affiliation with Congress but some voices within the association are unhappy with the support of the trade union movement for the Programme for Competitiveness and Work (PCW).

Some within Congress are clearly concerned about the knock-on effect for the PCW of granting the Garda more than the 5.5 per cent now on the table. One trade union leader has already warned that "all bets are off and hell will be open to sinners" if some public service workers receive additional special pay awards.

Ostensibly, at least, the GRA is seeking a 39 per cent pay increase although, of course, the leadership would be happy to settle for less than this. How much less is what has still to be teased out by the GRA itself and, indeed, by the Government.

The Minister for Finance, Mr McCreevy, has set out the Government's room for manoeuvre in stark terms: he does not, he said, "intend to engage in a policy of appeasement which is going to set off a raft of public sector pay claims and send us back to the mid-eighties when we were effectively bankrupt."

The Government, therefore, is on the horns of a dilemma. Should it face down the Garda in the hope of securing the support of the public? Or should it concede to the GRA demands with all of the danger involved?

The choices appear bleak. The primary objective must be to devise a mechanism outside of these two options, which will entice the gardai to rejoin their colleagues in the AGSI at the pay review table, in the hopes of hammering out a settlement. The case for some kind of external review to tease out all of the issues remains strong.

The Garda, however, faces other difficulties. A great deal of hard-won public respect has been dissipated by the "blue-flu" escapade. It will have to be won back.

There are also bridges to build with the Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne. His strong performance has done much to bolster the image of the force, but he has been exasperated by the GRA's tactics.

He has already spoken of action - like the blue flu - which is "totally alien to the tradition of An Garda Siochana and its high standards of behaviour and integrity."

That integrity is now under close public scrutiny. There is a clear onus on both Government and the GRA to pull back from the brink.

The GRA has to consider the overall potential damage to the image of the force. For its part, the Government might actively encourage possible GRA affiliation to Congress.

We do not see firemen, prison officers or Customs officials on the streets precisely because of such affiliation. It is noticeable that the gardai have not elected for a phased withdrawal of labour, but rather for a walkout en masse.

Such an unstructured policy could have had disastrous public consequences but for the dedication of members of key sections of the force who remained on the job on "blue flu" day and were available to respond to the armed hold-up in Ashford, Co Wicklow, which could have so easily resulted in an even greater loss of life.

A shared blame and a shared responsibility lie at the heart of this crisis. Garda leaders did have the opportunity to achieve a decent pay increase for their members five years ago and many would argue that they squandered that chance.

Equally, the Government has a responsibility to ensure that there are no false promises and that it does not exploit the special non-union status of the Garda.

Chris Finnegan, a former general secretary of the Garda Federation, is a freelance journalist.