asked the Minister for Justice if he will state whether, in the recent recruitment to the Gárda Síochána, applicants who satisfied in every respect the advertised requirements as to age, physique, character, education and service in the Defence Forces, were not called for interview or permitted to sit for the qualifying examination; and, if so, if he will inform the House as to the method adopted or the principle pursued in selecting candidates to be interviewed or called for examination.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Recruitment to Gárda Síochána.
In response to the advertisement for recruits for the Gárda Síochána, over 2,000 applications were received, and, in view of the comparatively small number of vacancies, the Commissioner of the force decided that a limited number only of these should be presented to the Civil Service Commissioners for examination. These latter were selected by the Commissioner after examination of the information given in the application forms, and the guiding principle in the making of the selection was the comparative physical and educational qualifications of the applicants.