John Lahart
Question:95. Deputy John Lahart asked the Minister for Justice the number of gardaí currently based in Tallaght station, Dublin 24; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [16194/22]
View answerTuesday, 29 March 2022
Questions (95)
Written answers
As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is, by law, responsible for the management and control of An Garda Síochána and for the effective and efficient use of Garda resources, including the deployment of An Garda Síochána throughout the State. 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 policing priorities and crime trends, to ensure their optimum use. I further understand that it is a matter for the Divisional Chief Superintendent to determine the optimum distribution of duties among the personnel available to him or her, having regard to the profile of each area within the Division and its specific needs.
Tallaght Garda Station, as of 28 February 2022, has 224 members assigned (189 Gardaí, 26 Sergeants, 8 Inspectors and 1 Superintendent). This is an increase of over 27% since the end of 2015, when there were 176 members assigned to the station.
I am pleased that Budget 2022 reflects the commitment of the Government to ensuring our communities are safe and that An Garda Síochána has the resources to be an effective and trusted policing service. The budget provided by Government to the Garda Commissioner continues to increase to unprecedented levels, with an allocation of over €2 billion in funding for this year.
This includes funding for the recruitment of up to an additional 800 Gardaí and a further 400 Garda staff. This significant investment demonstrates the Government's commitment to increasing the Garda workforce to enable the organisation to keep our communities safe.
I am pleased to note the strong interest in the recent Garda recruitment campaign, with over 10,000 applications received.