Retired Donegal garda gets permission for second challenge over Gaeltacht allowance

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Paul Wallace, a retired Garda sergeant from Burtonport, has received High Court permission to challenge the Commissioner’s refusal to reinstate his Gaeltacht allowance. He says the exclusion of the allowance from his pension costs him €249.38 a month. In July 2025, he had received permission to pursue a case over the alleged failure to explain the refusal; those proceedings were settled on the basis that the Commissioner would provide reasons.

Wallace now argues that the notice giving reasons, which he received last February, was unlawful and invalid. His counsel successfully applied for judicial review at the High Court, and Ms Justice Mary Rose Gearty adjourned the matter to November. The refusal remains under challenge.