The Central Statistics Office has said it now has confidence in the Garda crime figures and has removed its warning about the reliability of the data.
The CSO has been publishing crime statistics "under reservation" for the past nine years and had suspended publication for a time because it was not satisfied with An Garda Síochána's PULSE data.
It announced today it has now removed its reservations.
The CSO said its recommendations have been implemented, there are good controls in place for crime recording and An Garda Síochána has appointed a senior manager with responsibility for data quality.
Gardaí have also made a document explaining how crime is recorded available to the public.
Issues were first identified with the Garda's PULSE crime recording system in 2014. The CSO found that reported crimes were not being recorded, others were being misclassified while other reported crimes were marked as detected with no corresponding prosecution.
The CSO said there has now been an improvement to 98% in the quality of the Garda's data recording and while there may be some legacy data issues for historically recorded crimes, users can now be confident in the quality of the published crime figures.
A CSO 2023 review found evidence of consistent high quality data levels and a much enhanced sense within An Garda Síochána of the risks to PULSE data quality and the controls and resources needed to manage those risks.
It said the Garda's PULSE data is now "fit for official statistical purposes while also generating improved data for operational policing purposes".
The CSO said that "taken as a package, these give a level of assurance to users that they can be confident in the PULSE data".
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris welcomed the move and said "data and technology now track and sometimes lead virtually every step of policing".
He said: "Modern, professional police services increasingly use data such as crime statistics to prevent and tackle crime.
"Having this data to aid gardaí in keeping people safe is only possible through proper and accurate recording by all Garda personnel."
Mr Harris added that the "lifting of the reservation is also an important return on the investment made by Government in Garda modernisation."
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee said crime statistics are of huge value in informing the Garda's operational policy and policing approach, and said the CSO's decision is underpinned by "significant investment in technology and data improvements".
