The Authority

Dr Elaine Byrne is a practising barrister on the South Eastern and Dublin Circuits with a
specialisation in Regulatory Law and Employment Law.

Dr Byrne has served as a member of the Policing Authority since March 2021 and was appointed as Chairperson from 1 January 2024.

She has acted as a consultant on governance matters for the European Commission, the
United Nations and the World Bank. Her book, “Political Corruption in Ireland 1922-2010: A Crooked Harp,” was published in 2012. She has served as a member of the Hamilton Review Group on Economic Crime and Corruption, and the Seanad Working Group on Reform.

Emma Reidy is CEO of Aoibhneas Domestic Abuse Support for women and Children since 2012. For 20 years Emma has worked and volunteered with non-for-profit organisations that support vulnerable people affected by prostitution, addiction, domestic abuse, and homelessness.

Emma has a bachelor’s (hons) degree in Social Science, master’s degree in Equality Studies, and master’s degree in business administration with additional qualifications in Human Resource Management, Group Facilitation, Supervision and Coaching.

Emma has concluded 2 terms as a Director in Safe Ireland and is a member of the National Observatory against Violence, National Women’s Council.

Freda McKittrick qualified as a social worker in 1985, and has practiced in the UK and Ireland. She was head of Barnardos Guardian ad litem service from 2000 to 2024. She continues to work as an independent social worker undertaking advocacy work, reviews and investigations. She is a board member of Focus Ireland and the Legal Aid Board and she is a lay member of the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Tribunal.

Joe Costello is a former member of the Oireachtas (1989 to 2016). During that time, he served as a Senator, TD, and Minister of State for Trade and Development at the Department of Foreign Affairs.  He also served as a Dublin City Councillor from 1991 to 2003 and more recently from 2019 to 2023. As a City Councillor, he was a member of the Grangegorman Development Agency, the City of Dublin Education and Training Board and Dublin City Council Joint Policing Committee.

Martina Moloney was a career official in Irish Local Government for thirty-seven years culminating in the role of County Manager/Chief Executive in County Louth and County Galway.  She holds a BA and MA in Public Management and a Doctorate in Governance. Since retirement she served on the National Oversight and Audit Commission for Local Government, and a number of state agencies and Audit Committees and currently is Chairperson of the Heritage Council. She chaired the inaugural pilot Community Safety Partnership in Longford which developed the first Community Safety Plan.

Michael Feehan has in recent years worked on contract with the UN Office for Drugs and Crime in various countries including Sri Lanka, Thailand, Laos and Nigeria. The focus of this work was on the development of Police and Community partnerships which was also the topic in his doctoral thesis.

Following his retirement from An Garda Síochána, Michael worked as Chief Security Officer for the Dublin Airport Authority from 2013-2017. He was previously Assistant Garda Commissioner for the Dublin Metropolitan Region (2009-2012) and Assistant Commissioner Northern Region (2008-2009).

Dr Nessa Lynch is an academic at the School of Law, University College Cork, specialising in law and technology, policing and youth justice. Originally from Cork, she spent most of her career in New Zealand, mainly in an academic role. She has held high-trust roles in data ethics and technology assurance in the public sector and consulted for a range of private sector and public sector clients. Prior to re-joining academia in 2024, she held a senior leadership position in New Zealand Police, covering the Royal New Zealand Police College and training quality assurance.

Tony O’Brien is former Director General of the Health Service Executive (HSE). He was previously Chief Advisor to the HSE on implementing the National Cancer Control Strategy and Chairman of the National Cancer Registry Board. He was the founding Chief Executive of the National Screening Service. Prior to the HSE, he was Chief Executive of the Irish Family Planning Association and the UK Family Planning Association. He is Adjunct Associate Professor with the Centre for Health Policy and Management, in the Discipline of Public Health, at the School of Medicine Trinity College Dublin. Tony is Chair of Safety Net Primary Care and became Chair of the Peter McVerry Trust in May 2025. He contributes a regular health policy column to the Sunday Independent. Tony is a registered Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and is a community emergency first responder, on a voluntary basis, with the National Ambulance Service.