Humbert Summer School: Some of the recommendations of a working party set up in the wake of the interim findings of the Morris tribunal would be implemented in the near future, the Garda Commissioner, Mr Noel Conroy, said yesterday.
Speaking before he delivered the keynote speech at the opening of the 18th annual Humbert Summer School, Mr Conroy said: "Others will take a little bit longer but you can say that we will be working very hard to ensure that whatever is needed is done and there will be no foot-dragging as far as I am concerned".
Priority recommendations related to the recording of information by officers, Mr Conroy said.
He added that the way intelligence was recorded and then dealt with was also an issue.
There was also a recommendation in relation to promotions.
Training was now ongoing for all interview boards within An Garda Síochána. There was going to be a "competency based" interview system for all ranks in the force, he said..
Asked how soon confidence in the Garda would be restored following the findings of the tribunal, Mr Conroy said: "I would hope people out there would not feel that we in general have let them down . . . there is some work to be done.
"I would be the first to admit that what has come out of Morris is pretty severe.
"It's full steam ahead as far as I am concerned."
The Commissioner said he did not wish to comment on disciplinary proceedings because due process had to apply to the individuals involved.
Addressing the summer school on the theme, "The media and the public interest - spin out of control", Mr Conroy said the media acted as a watchdog for society.However, intense competition existed in the industry and the "gatekeeping" role of editors and sub-editors had been reduced significantly.
Virtually no time existed to substantiate news and information resulting in news that was sometimes less than accurate.
"It is extremely important to maintain the high standards of media reporting that this country has enjoyed so that the first story to appear should be absolutely correct in every detail," Mr Conroy said.
Giving an example of a recent "inaccurate" media report, he referred to a news item in a Sunday newspaper during the recent visit of President Bush.
It claimed that the Commissioner had been "hauled down" to Co Clare to be carpeted by US secret service agents after pictures of President Bush standing at the window of his bedroom suite in Dromoland Castle were published.
Commissioner Conroy said: "This article was carried on the front page and started an immediate reaction by other media outlets which questioned the ability of the gardaí to provide security for the US president."
Mr Conroy suggested that the introduction of a watchdog organisation to oversee media activities would serve to reduce the amount of civil libel actions taken against the media.