Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy has declared that the Garda Reserve will go ahead, despite strong opposition from Garda representative bodies.
In his first public comment on the issue, Commissioner Conroy said he was in favour of any measures which would enhance policing, and he believed the reserve force to be one such measure.
"The legislators have legislated. We must comply with the legislation. The elected politicians have made a decision that the reserve will be recruited and that's what is going to happen. Anything that improves the service to the community, I'm all for it, and I feel this will improve the service."
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell said gardaí risked "self-destruction" in the eyes of the public if permanent members embarked on a policy of non-co-operation with reservists.
The minister and the commissioner were in Chester, England, yesterday to attend the national conference of the UK reserve police force, the UK Special Constabulary.
Ten days ago the general secretary of the Garda Representative Association (GRA), PJ Stone, made an unprecedented attack on Commissioner Conroy, accusing him of lacking leadership on the reserve force issue.
Last night, Commissioner Conroy said he would encourage the GRA and the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI) to enter into dialogue with himself and Mr McDowell. Both associations are opposed to the reserve force and have vowed not to co-operate with reservists, 900 of whom are due to be in place by September. Reservists will only operate under the supervision of full-time members, meaning that non-co-operation by GRA and AGSI members would, in theory, undermine plans for the reserve.
Commissioner Conroy said he believed this opposition may change "in time" when the associations see the calibre of people the reserve force will attract. "It will not devalue the duty of regular members," he said last night.
He said he would expect reservists to play a full part in policing, such as intervening in armed robberies.
However, the primary role of the reservists would be in community policing.
The chief constable of Cheshire Constabulary, Peter Fahy, indicated that the policy of non co-operation with the reservists planned by the AGSI and the GRA would have consequences for the successful roll out of the part-time force in Ireland. "It would be impossible, you couldn't do it," he said.
However, Mr McDowell said he believed gardaí would obey the law and comply with the new Garda Síochána Act which provides for the reserve force. The full-time force would be "excoriated" by or attract strong disapproval from members of the public in the event of non-co-operation, he believed.
"You can talk about non-co-operation, but you can also talk about self-destruction, so I'm saying we have to be very forward thinking in all of this."
He believed he was "resourceful" in conflict resolution. Neither he nor Commissioner Conroy should be underestimated in that regard, he said.