Dr. Vicky Conway as part of Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland recommends sweeping reform

The Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland has concluded its work and published its report. Dr Vicky Conway of the DCU School of Law and Government is a member of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland and contributed to the report in which she, along with other 10 committee members, proposed sweeping reform of policing in Ireland.

The Commission recommended a new approach to policing and community safety, which will ensure police are more visible in communities, and can focus on preventing harm. It also proposed measures to deliver a professional, ethical, modern and effective police service that is well-managed, cost-effective, properly trained and equipped. Other proposals include: a new coherent framework for the independent oversight of policing and community safety, with a clear mandate for effective scrutiny in order to promote professional standards of policing and ensure fully independent investigation of complaints; plus a new framework for national security, headed by a National Security Coordinator, to pool intelligence and information and provide long-term threat assessments.

Dr Conway was appointed by the Government to the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland in May 2017 and was tasked with examining the structure of the force, the culture and ethos, recruitment, training and management. She has been a member of the Policing Authority since 2015 and is a leading researcher on policing in Ireland, with an emphasis on the intersection between social change, police culture and police accountability.