Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 July 2023
546. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice the extent to which it is expected that deployments of gardaí throughout the country are likely to be enhanced in the coming year in such a way as to ensure that those locations under threat from crime are adequately policed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34354/23]
View answer549. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice the number of extra gardaí likely to become available throughout the regions, including community gardaí, arising from recent graduations from the Garda college; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34359/23]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 546 and 549 together.
Whilst Ireland is a comparatively safe country in international terms, I can assure the Deputy that the Government is committed to building stronger, safer communities. The Budget 2023 allocation of over €2 billion will allow for the continued recruitment of Garda members and staff, with recruits entering Templemore every 11 weeks. The Deputy will appreciate the Garda Commissioner is operationally responsible for the management of An Garda Síochána, including responsibility for the recruitment, training and deployment of Garda members.
I am however assured that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review. I am advised that this is considered in the context of crime trends and policing priorities, to ensure the optimum use of these resources.
The number of recruits have continued to grow in each class following the re-opening of college after Covid-19. A total of 92 recruits entered the training college in late November 2022, 135 in February 2023, 154 in May with a further intake expected this month.The Deputy will also note that almost 5,000 people applied to join An Garda Síochána in this year’s recruitment campaign. This is in line with the last pre-Covid campaign in 2019, which shows demand to join An Garda Síochána is as strong as ever. This most recent campaign, which closed on 14 April, will provide a stream of candidates for future intakes.As of the end of May 2023, there were 13,927 Garda members across the country. This represents an increase of almost 9% since 2015. In addition, the civilianisation programme has freed up almost 900 Garda members from back office work for front line policing work since 2015.I can assure the Deputy that the Government remains committed to reaching its current targets of 15,000 Gardaí and 4,000 Garda staff and I will be engaging with my colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform, over the coming months, to secure the resources in 2024 to ensure that we continue to make progress towards those targets.
I can confirm to the Deputy that I can confirm that there are currently 370 recruits in the Garda College in Templemore and that the next attestation is due to take place later this month.
For the Deputy's information, detailed statistics on Garda workforce numbers, including details of probationer allocations, are published on gov.ie and are regularly updated by my Department, from information supplied by An Garda Síochána. Probationer statistics can be accessed using the following link:
www.gov.ie/en/publication/7c2e6-probationer-gardai/.
