Concerns about Irish policing oversight bodies raised in new EU-wide report

18 March 2024

ICCL and eight other Irish organisations contributed to international report

The rule of law in the EU continued to deteriorate in 2023, as governments further weakened legal and democratic checks and balances, according to a newly published EU-wide report. In its fifth annual edition, the 'Liberties Rule of Law Report 2024' identifies the most striking violations of the rule of law in the European Union in 2023.

Irish Report

A national country report for Ireland was coordinated by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL). While the overall situation in Ireland is generally good, the report raises concerns about the difficulties people face accessing Irish courts and the lack of a timeline and plan for implementation of the recommendations of The Independent Review Group on the Offences Against the State Act.

The report also highlights concerns about the structures of the yet-to-be-established Office of the Independent Examiner of Security Legislation, the Policing and Community Safety Authority and the Office of the Police Ombudsman.

The national country report was coordinated by ICCL with inputs also from Community Law and Mediation, Inclusion Ireland, Justice for Shane, the Irish Penal Reform Trust, Outhouse, Mercy Law Resource Centre, the National Union of Journalists and Mental Health Reform. The Irish Country Report is available to download below.

Commenting on the report’s findings, ICCL Executive Director, Liam Herrick, said:

“While it may seem the Irish government has made strides recently to improve the rule of law situation, the reality is mixed. Legislation reforming the justice system is often chronically delayed and sometimes fails to meet the highest standard possible. The government must match talk with action to ensure the rule of law is fully respected in Ireland." 

International Report

The international report, a collaboration of 37 human rights organisations covering 19 EU countries, is the most in-depth 'shadow reporting' exercise on the rule of law to date by an independent civil liberties network. The European Commission takes these findings into account in its annual monitoring of the rule of law, confirming the international relevance of the report.

Balazs Denes, Executive Director of the Civil Liberties Union for Europe (Liberties), said: 

“Liberties’ Rule of Law Report 2024 shows that intentional harm or neglect to fix breaches to the rule of law by governments, if left unaddressed, can evolve into systemic issues over time. The growing far right, building on these abuses, will very quickly dismantle European democracy if the European Commission does not use the tools at its disposal, including infringement proceedings or conditional freezing of EU funds, in a much more assertive way. There is no need to wait until a captive state like Hungary's emerges with an irremovable anti-democratic regime.”