ALTHOUGH she has committed to increase Garda numbers this year, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald is unable to confirm if there will be more community Gardaí allocated to Limerick.
Responding to a parliamentary question from Limerick Fianna Fáil TD Niall Collins, Minister Fitzgerald said the Government is committed to ensuring visible, effective and responsive policing throughout the country.
Stating that 23 Gardaí were assigned to the Limerick division in 2016, she added that the Government wants to increase overall Garda numbers to 21,000 by 2021 comprising 15,000 Gardaí, 2,000 Reserve members and 4,000 civilians.
It is expected that 3,200 new Gardaí will be recruited on a phased basis over the next four years, in addition to the 1,200 that have been recruited since the reopening of the Garda College in September 2014.
300 new appointments will also be made to the Garda Reserve.
Together with the 23 Gardaí assigned to Limerick last year, a further 656 recruits have “attested as members of An Garda Síochána and have been assigned to mainstream uniform duties”, she said.
900 more Gardaí will qualify from the training college this year bringing overall numbers up to 13,500.
Minister Fitzgerald said that the “focus on investment in personnel is critical.”
“Gardaí have a role to play in addressing community policing issues as and when the need arises and, in that sense, community policing involves far more than a single unit within An Garda Síochána.
“The moratorium on recruitment introduced in 2010 resulted in a significant reduction in the number of dedicated Community Gardaí throughout the state.”
A number of Limerick rural stations closed during the Garda Consolidation process drawing sharp criticism from Deputy Collins.
Doon and Shanagolden stations closed in March 2012. Galbally, Kilfinane, Castletown Conyers, Kilmeedy and Tournafolla were closed by the end of January 2013. Mary Street Station in Limerick City was also closed as part of the cost saving restructuring process.
Minister Fitzgerald said that Government is rebuilding the force and providing the Commissioner with the resources she needs to allow her to deploy increasing numbers of Community Gardaí across every Garda Division, including Limerick, in the coming years.
She added that the force would continue to receive substantial investment in resources across the board under the Government’s Capital Plan 2016 – 2021.
€205 million in additional funding for communications technology and €46 million for new Garda vehicles has been allocated over the lifetime of the plan.
