Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 23 November 2021
486. Deputy Jim O'Callaghan asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí by rank attached to Clare drugs unit in each of the past three years in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [57434/21]
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.
In addition to allowing for increased recruitment generally, these additional Budget resources will also enable An Garda Síochána to assign resources to Specialist Bureaus such as the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau who lead on the strategy for tackling drugs and works with Garda Divisional Drug Units nationwide in demand reduction and supply reduction at local level.
The below table shows the number of Garda members attached to the Clare drugs unit in each of the years specified by the Deputy:
|
Clare |
SG |
GD |
Total |
|
31/12/2018 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
|
31/12/2019 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
31/12/2020 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
31/10/2021 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
