Vol. 443 No. 8
55 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Justice if she will make a statement on the number of Garda recruits to be trained in 1994 in view of the statement by the President of the Garda Representative Association that the maximum number of recruits which could be trained in any one year under current procedures is limited to 250.
As I said in my reply to the Garda Representative Association President's statement on 3 May last, I am confident that the targets set out in the Government's Programme for Garda Recruitment in the period 1994 to 1997 will be met with no reductions whatsoever in the duration or quality of training provided. The programme envisages (a) that the remaining 1994 and 1995 phases of the present recruitment campaign will be compressed or accelerated into this year, and (b) that a new three year campaign including the recruitment of 1,050 new gardaí beginning in 1995 and running right through to the end of 1997 will get under way. This campaign has now commenced.
I should add that the total intake of Garda trainees for 1993 was 324; so much for the limit of 250 mentioned in the question. The projected accelerated intake this year is 407. As of 3 May 1994, 203 recruits have entered the Garda Training College with the balance scheduled to enter in two remaining phases on 25 July and 17 October next.
