Vol. 434 No. 6
81 Mr. Haughey asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí attached to Clontarf Garda station, Dublin 3; if she has satisfied herself with these numbers and that the Elm Mount Estate, Beaumont, Dublin 9, receives adequate Garda attention.
83 Mr. Haughey asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí attached to Clontarf Garda station, Dublin 3; if she has satisfied herself with these numbers; if foot patrols are undertaken in this district; and if the number of gardaí attached to the station are adequate to deal with the problem of drugs and vandalism in the Clontarf neighbourhood.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 81 and 83 together.
The allocation of Garda manpower to individual areas is a matter for the Garda authorities who make their decisions having regard to ongoing assessments of the policing arrangements of those areas. They inform me that the current strength at Clontarf station is 52, which shows an increase of 6 over the manpower figure for 1990. The area also receives constant attention from the Divisional Task Force at Santry. I am also informed by the Garda authorities that the crime figures for 1992 for the sub-district show a decrease of almost 15 per cent as against the previous year. The Garda are satisfied that the current policing arrangements for Clontarf are adequate to meet the policing needs of the District.
Having regard to the policing arrangements for Elm Mount Estate, the Garda inform me that a community garda from Clontarf station has responsibility for this area. Foot patrols are carried out throughout the sub-District on a regular basis and mobile patrols are also available to deal with any specific problems which might arise in the area.
All members on patrol in the Clontarf sub-District are alert to all types of crime and vandalism, including drug-related offences. There is a Drugs Unit based in the District consisting of 2 full-time gardaí. In addition, there are 4 gardaí at the Divisional HQ in Santry employed full-time on drug law enforcement and the gardaí at Clontarf can call on these and the Central Drug Squad who are based at Harcourt Square, when necessary. A significant quantity of heroin was located in the District earlier this year.
