Proposals to penalize undercover informants to commit crimes will require detailed policy analysis before they can be approved, Department of Justice he said.

The recommendation of the Garda Inspectorate, the police watchdog, would allow Guard sources in criminal organizations to engage in certain crimes in cases where it can help prevent more serious crimes or break up the gang.

The inspectorate also recommended that Garda anti-corruption investigators be empowered to engage in sting operations, known as integrity tests, to catch corrupt public servants.

This can take the form of undercover police offering fake bribes to officials to determine whether they are vulnerable to corruption.

In response to both recommendations, the department said that, if implemented, they “represent a significant change in current procedure and practice and may require legislative change.”

A department spokesman said they would require a detailed policy review by the department, as well as engagement with the Garda and other agencies before a final decision is made. He said that the works will take place in the next period.

The inspectorate recommended that any system that allows criminal informants to engage in crime should be backed by “legislation, authority and oversight” to avoid human rights abuses.

“This type of covert activity should be limited to what is necessary to achieve the required objective,” it said.

Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) expressed concern about the proposals, citing the European Convention on Human Rights which restricts the authorization of crimes such as murder or torture.

The sanctioning of criminal behavior by law enforcement has led to controversy in Britain after it emerged that undercover officers have committed crimes such as arson while infiltrating environmental groups.

The inspectorate’s proposals appear to have support among officers working in drugs and organized crime policing. One security source said crucial covert operations were sometimes severely limited by the requirement that informants not themselves be involved in crime.

Another source said steps should also be taken to allow undercover officers to also engage in low-level crime under certain circumstances. In its report, the inspectorate noted that undercover Garda deployments are currently limited to the purchase of drugs for testing purposes and undercover surveillance, both areas which do not require officer offending.

Historically, undercover informants were often informally allowed to break the law, the sources said. However, this was done on a “look the other way” basis, they said, rather than under the formal sanction of Garda leadership or the Director of Public Prosecutions.