Vol. 535 No. 1
512 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if Garda recruitment is taking place; if so, the number of vacancies to be filled; the last occasion the numbers in the force were increased; and the response received to the recruitment drive. [11575/01]
In October 2000 the Government approved my proposals for a Garda recruitment competition and the recruitment of 500 Garda trainees from that competition in 2001. This follows on from decisions to recruit 550 trainees in each of the years 1998 and 1999 and 500 trainees in 2000. The latest recruitment competition will fulfil the commitment in the Programme for Government to increase the strength of the force to 12,000.
No difficulty has been experienced in obtaining sufficient applicants of an appropriate standard to meet recruiting requirements in respect of any of the above competitions. The need for further recruitment will be kept under review in my Department and any proposals in this regard will be a matter for consideration by the Government in due course.
