Former senior PSNI officer Drew Harris has reportedly declined an extension to his contract as Garda Commissioner in the Republic of Ireland.
Mr Harris was approached by the Irish government to stay on in his post beyond the age of 60, which he will reach next year.
However the Irish Times reports he has indicated he does not plan to take up a second extension, having previously agreed a two-year extension last year which will take his service up to mid-2025.
Mr Harris formerly served 16 years in senior roles within the PSNI, including deputy chief constable, before his move across the border in 2018 on a five-year contract.
According to the newspaper, the Irish Department of Justice did not reply to queries over Mr Harris.
Garda Headquarters told the newspaper: “Following a previous Government proposal, Commissioner Harris’s contract was extended by an additional two years to mid-2025″.
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It comes as the Irish Times reports a dispute within the Garda over taxation on pensions for the assistant commissioner post means two former PSNI officers could potentially be the only applicants for the second most senior post in the service.
It is reported six of the current eight assistant commissioners have no plans to apply for the deputy commissioner’s post due to concerns over the current Standard Fund Threshold (SFT) taxation regime for large pensions.
The taxation regime means assistant commissioners currently serving are likely to face a significant bill on retirement – a figure that could rise to as much as €500,000 (£427,000) for deputy commissioners.
The application deadline for the post in the Republic comes in two weeks, with the Association of Garda Chief Superintendents writing to the Irish Minister for Finance Jack Chambers, claiming there was a “serious risk” its members would not apply for the role.
According to the Irish Times two former PSNI officers – Jonathan Roberts and Paula Hilman – would be the only two candidates left applying for the deputy commissioner post with six of the other eight current assistant commissioners having no plans to apply over the taxation concerns.
The newspaper said Mr Roberts is reportedly keen to apply for the post.
For Roberts and Hilman, such rules around taxation would not apply as they spent the majority of their careers in Northern Ireland.
Mr Roberts took up his post as assistant commissioner back in 2022, with Ms Hilman being appointed in 2020.
In a reply to the Irish Times, the Department of Finance said an independent review of the SFT regime – by independent expert Dr Donal de Buitléir and commissioned last year – had been received and was being considered by Mr Chambers.
“Any decision regarding publication of the report or implementing any of the recommendations will be made by the Minister following this consideration,” it said, adding the correspondence from the chief superintendents would be “replied to in due course”.