Written Answers Nos. 722-741
723. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of crimes per annum by type of offences in each of the years 2009 to 2017 and to date in 2018, in the Louth division by division, district and sub-district, in tabular form. [32808/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Central Statistics Office (CSO), as the national statistical agency, is responsible for the compilation and publication of the official recorded crime statistics, and the CSO has established a dedicated unit for this purpose. I have asked the CSO to forward the available statistics in relation to the information requested directly to the Deputy.
739. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if funding for the refurbishment of the cell block of Malahide Garda station will be provided in view of the fact that the cells in the station are in need of refurbishment; when works on this project will commence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32854/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Deputy will be aware that the programme of replacement and refurbishment of Garda accommodation is progressed by the Garda authorities working in close cooperation with the Office of Public Works (OPW), which has the responsibility for the provision and maintenance of Garda accommodation. This responsibility includes identifying and progressing any necessary remedial or refurbishment works required at individual stations. As Minister, I have no direct role in these matters.
I understand from the Garda authorities that a cell refurbishment programme is currently ongoing, following a request by An Garda Síochána to the OPW in that regard. I further understand that an upgrade of the cells in Malahide Garda Station is not included in that refurbishment programme.
The Deputy may however be interested to know that cells in Ballymun, Clontarf, Coolock, Swords, Raheny and Balbriggan Garda Stations in the DMR North Division were included by An Garda Síochána in the cell refurbishment programme and have now been upgraded.
740. Deputy Seán Haughey asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the number of additional gardaí allocated to each station in the Garda R and J districts following the most recent Garda graduation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32855/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the Deputy will appreciate, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the distribution of personnel and I, as Minister, have no direct role in the matter. Garda management keeps this distribution under review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities to ensure optimum use is made of the resources.
This Government is committed to ensuring a strong and visible police presence throughout the country in order to maintain and strengthen community engagement, provide reassurance to citizens and to deter crime. To achieve this the Government has put in place a plan for an overall Garda workforce of 21,000 personnel by 2021 comprising 15,000 Garda members, 2,000 Reserve members and 4,000 civilians. We are making real, tangible progress on achieving this goal.
The moratorium on recruitment introduced in 2010 resulted in a significant reduction in the strength of An Garda Síochána. We are now rebuilding the organisation and providing the Commissioner with the resources needed to deploy increasing numbers of Gardaí across every Division as new Garda recruits come on stream. The work of local Gardaí is also supported by a number of Garda national units such as the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the Armed Support Units, the Garda National Economic Crime Bureau and the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau and these specialist units are also receiving significant investment.
I am informed by the Commissioner that since the reopening of the Garda College in September 2014, almost 2,000 recruits have attested as members of An Garda Síochána and have been assigned to mainstream duties nationwide. Garda numbers, taking account of retirements, increased to 13,551 at the end of 2017 – a net increase of over 600 since the end of 2016. This year a further 800 new Garda Recruits will enter the Garda College and we are on track to reach 14,000 by the end of 2018.
In addition, a further 500 civilians will also be recruited to fill critical skills gaps across the organisation and to facilitate the redeployment of Gardaí from administrative and technical duties to front-line operational duties. There are plans to strengthen the Garda Reserve with new Reserves expected to commence training in 2018.
This focus on investment in personnel is critical and I am pleased that funding is in place to maintain this high level of investment in the Garda workforce to ensure that the overall vision for 2021 remains on track.
The Districts referred to by the Deputy form part of Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) North Division and I am informed by the Commissioner that the latest figures indicate 677 Gardaí are attached to the DMR North Division. I have set out in the following table the data requested.
Probationer Garda Allocations by Division and Station - 2015 to 2018
|
DIVISION |
STATION |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
Mar-18 |
Jun-18 |
Total |
|
D.M.R. NORTH |
BALLYMUN |
9 |
0 |
20 |
4 |
5 |
38 |
|
SANTRY |
0 |
9 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
9 |
|
|
BALBRIGGAN |
0 |
5 |
18 |
4 |
0 |
27 |
|
|
COOLOCK |
5 |
5 |
13 |
3 |
4 |
30 |
|
|
SWORDS |
0 |
10 |
5 |
2 |
0 |
17 |
|
|
RAHENY |
5 |
0 |
10 |
2 |
4 |
21 |
|
|
CLONTARF |
0 |
5 |
4 |
2 |
0 |
11 |
|
|
TOTAL |
19 |
34 |
70 |
17 |
13 |
153 |
741. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Minister for Justice and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 243 of 3 July 2018, the parallel evaluations of the drug related intimidation reporting programme that are under way; when the evaluation commenced; when An Garda Síochána and the national family support network expect the evaluation to be completed; and if a report of the findings of the evaluations will be published. [32884/18]
Amharc ar fhreagraFurther to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 243 of 3 July 2018, I can inform the Deputy that while An Garda Síochána and the National Family Support Network are conducting separate evaluations, they are liaising on the issue.
I understand that the evaluation of the Reporting Programme by the National Family Support Network is due to be completed in August, while the evaluation by An Garda Síochána is due to be completed in October.
The outcomes of the evaluations will be reflected in a joint action plan which will be published before the end of 2018.
