No replacement named for departing superintendent

A Clare TD has called for the immediate appointment of a new superintendent in Ennis after it emerged that no replacement has been selected for Peter Duff, who departs the role next week.

Chief Superintendent John Kerin told The Clare Champion that he does not know if or when a replacement will be appointed.
Responding to this, Fianna Fáil Deputy Timmy Dooley has said it “undermines the capacity of the force to adequately police Ennis and its environs”.
It was announced on Tuesday that Superintendent Peter Duff will leave his position in the county town to return to Dublin, where he will take on the role of Superintendent in the Tallaght District.
“I wish Superintendent Duff well, he has certainly served the community in an exemplary fashion while he was here and he will be a big loss to the town. He is a particular loss when you consider the Government hasn’t identified a replacement and it is not clear whether, or if, there will be a replacement. It certainly undermines the capacity of the force to adequately police Ennis and its environs. They are already challenged by a reduction in garda numbers and I think it would be a very serious situation if a top-level management position like this is not filled immediately. His replacement should be identified and in place before he leaves,” Deputy Dooley said.
Clare Garda Division Chief Superintendent John Kerin explained he did not “know anything about any replacement yet. I have not been contacted in relation to it”.
“We are going to miss Peter,” he said, paying tribute to Superintendent Duff. “He was a tremendous worker, very committed to his role as superintendent in Ennis. He brought in some really good initiatives. He is very popular with his colleagues in the Clare division and is no doubt a man who is destined for greater things and higher rank. We wish him all the best on his move. On a personal basis I am glad he is getting home to his family but we will miss him here in Clare,” he said.
Speaking to The Clare Champion Superintendent Duff said he found his two years here very rewarding but said that one of the biggest challenges he faced was a reduction in human resources.
“There are challenges there with budget cuts. The biggest challenge for a manger is to try to keep a service going and to try to keep a policing service going at any given time. We have lost a lot of good people through retirements and they haven’t been replaced and there is a challenge in that. There were other challenges during my time here too. We have had the ongoing issues with certain sections of the Travelling community and we also had a murder,” Superintendent Duff recalled.
“I have very much enjoyed working with the garda and civilian staff in Ennis. Personally, it was difficult getting used to policing a rural county because all my experience was policing in metropolitan, urban and suburban areas but I got great assistance from all the staff in Ennis and from Chief Superintendent Kerin. For their part, they had to suffer having a Dub in their midst,” he joked.
Superintendent Duff said the most rewarding aspect of his time in Ennis was seeing a tangible drop in crime.
“Crime levels are relatively low in Ennis and Shannon at the moment. You can see the fruit of that. We have managed to get burglaries and thefts down across the county. You want to see the public happy with their level of safety and if you can do that, it is very rewarding,” he said.