Academic lawyer Dr Vicky Conway and human rights commissioner Paul Mageean have been appointed to the Policing Authority for a term that runs until December 2020.

Justice minister Charlie Flanagan said that their invaluable skills would assist the work of the authority in its continuing oversight of the performance of An Garda Síochána.

The appointments follow an application and shortlisting process run by the Public Appointments Service after a public advertisement.

Foundations

The minister added that the Policing Authority had put in place solid foundations that had become the building blocks for a programme of policing reform. The minister thanked Noel Brett, who is standing down from the authority, for his work.

Dr Vicky Conway is a former member of the authority and was a member of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland. She is an academic lawyer who lectures in DCU on criminal justice and the legal system in Ireland.  

Paul Mageean is a member of the Human Rights Commission in Northern Ireland and is the Director of the Institute of Professional Legal Studies in Queen’s University Belfast.

Agency

The Policing Authority is an independent agency established in January 2016 to oversee the performance of the Garda Síochána policing service by carrying out a broad range of oversight, review and governance functions. 

The authority was established by the enactment of the Garda Síochána (Policing Authority and Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2015, which amends the Garda Síochána Act 2005.