Catherine Murphy
Question:503. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice if there are plans to have high powered unmarked vehicles attached to Garda armed support unit fleet. [61283/21]
View answerTuesday, 14 December 2021
Questions (503)
Written answers
As the Deputy will be aware, under Section 26 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005 (as amended) the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business. This includes the allocation of resources to the various Garda divisions/specialised units. As Minister I play no role in this independent function. Further, under the Act, the Garda Commissioner is the Accounting Officer for An Garda Síochána and is responsible for the appropriations accounts of the Garda Síochána.
I have contacted the Garda authorities and have been advised of the following information in order to answer the Deputy's query.Currently there are no plans to purchase unmarked vehicles for the Garda armed support unit. No high-powered unmarked vehicles have been allocated to the Garda armed support unit in 2021.
The purchase and allocation of vehicles is made on the basis of identified operational demands, the availability of resources and is reviewed on a continual basis.