Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 November 2021
483. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí by rank attached to H district drugs unit as of 1 January 2021 and 15 November 2021, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57431/21]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible under the law for the management and administration of An Garda Síochána, including personnel matters and deployment of resources. As Minister, I have no role in these independent functions. I am assured, however, that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities, to ensure their optimum use.
The budget provided by Government to the Garda Commissioner continues to increase to unprecedented levels, with an allocation of €1.952 billion for 2021. Budget 2022 provides over €2 billion in funding. This significant investment by the Government has allowed for sustained and ongoing investment into An Garda Síochána and for the recruitment of new Gardaí. Budget 2022 provides for funding to recruit an additional 800 Garda members in 2022, subject to the public health situation.
The H District referred to by the Deputy is located within the DMR North Division. This District refers to the Garda stations located at Ballymun, Dublin Airport and Santry. The table below, furnished to me by the Garda authorities, provides the most recent figures available of the number of Garda members attached to the Drugs Unit in the DMR North Division.
|
DMR North |
Sergeant |
Garda |
Total |
|
31/12/2020 |
3 |
27 |
30 |
|
31/10/2021 |
3 |
26 |
29 |
